Since the 1990s, substantial investment has been made in reducing the number of young people who smoke. And with results. In 1999, more than half of Dutch schoolchildren had smoked a cigarette at some point, while in recent years this proportion has fluctuated around 17%.
Unfortunately, the tobacco industry has not been idle either. All kinds of new products have entered the market to get young people addicted to nicotine after all. To make smoking less attractive, tobacco cigarettes have been sold in unattractive packaging since 2020. But e-cigarettes, or vapes, are available in cheerful colours, with glitter paper and lights. In addition, sweet flavours such as watermelon and cotton candy make vaping attractive to young people. As a result, vaping has acquired a less harmful image than smoking.
Vaping and smoking: young people do both
Our recent panel study shows that one in ten of the young people surveyed between the ages of 12 and 25 vapes every month. It also shows that the majority of the young people surveyed who vape regularly also smoke tobacco cigarettes. International research confirms that vaping can be a stepping stone to smoking tobacco cigarettes.
The risks of vaping among young people
Moreover, vaping is harmful even when you do not smoke as well. Vaping causes respiratory and lung problems and increases the risk of cardiovascular disease. A person may become dizzy and nauseous, vomit or, in extreme cases, even fall into a coma and die.
Vaping is also harmful to the developing brain. Nicotine can disrupt the brain development of children and young people. This can lead to problems with attention and concentration. It also increases a person’s risk of developing other addictions, anxiety disorders or depression later in life.
It is therefore no surprise that there has been a great deal of attention recently to the dangers of vaping, for example in campaigns and news and current affairs programmes. Whether young people will ultimately vape less as a result is still highly questionable. So far, there is little evidence that warnings about the risks lead to different behaviour.
Preventing vaping: how?
There is still not much research providing clues about how we can halt vaping among young people. But there is a great deal of research showing what does and does not help reduce smoking, alcohol consumption or drug use. These insights can also be applied to reducing vaping.
The government has an important role to play in this. Measures that make vaping less accessible and attractive will certainly help prevent and reduce vaping. Think of higher prices and the ban on flavoured vapes. But schools can also do a great deal themselves.
Social norms and confidence
This does require a different approach from the one schools often take now. Lessons about the dangers of vaping alone do not lead to fewer students vaping. There is a considerable gap between knowing better and doing better. Social norms experienced by students and their confidence in their own abilities, for example, are much more important in changing behaviour. It is important that lessons about vaping address these issues.
The Smokefree challenge is an educational programme that contributes to a healthy social norm. This programme challenges students not to start smoking or vaping, based on the view that smoking and vaping are not normal. Research also shows that lessons about substance use only work well as part of a package of activities for students, parents and teaching staff.
Getting started with Helder op School
Giving advice and information alone is not enough. If your school wants to make a long-term difference to the number of students who vape, choose an integrated approach such as Helder op School. This scientifically based, extensively researched programme uses the four pillars of the Healthy School approach. These focus on policy, identifying and supporting students, education, and the environment/parents.
With this integrated programme, you work towards a safe and healthy school environment. The lessons are tailored to the students’ stage of development, and alongside providing information, you also work on other important factors that play a role in whether or not students smoke and vape. These include the social norms students experience, confidence and skills. Parents are also involved in delivering the lessons. They have an important role to play in preventing their child’s substance use.
In addition, through Helder op School, teachers learn to recognise problems among students. This enables the school to intervene quickly when necessary. Helder op School aligns with the Addiction Prevention Guideline for education, which describes what is best done at different stages of development.
Addressing vaping among young people requires perseverance. We must pull out all the stops. This is necessary to protect our young people from the tobacco industry, which is making every effort to get a new generation addicted to vapes. So, as a school, do your part by choosing an integrated school programme. Because information alone will not get us there.
Source: Trimbos Institute.