Many young people who never vaped in India are susceptible to starting: Study

New Delhi: Almost 61% of people aged between 15-30 in India who have never used e-cigarettes before are susceptible to taking up vaping in the future, according to results of an international survey by The George Institute for Global Health. The research findings were published in the journal Drug and Alcohol Dependence.

Results from an online survey of 4,007 people internationally, identified exposure to e-cigarette advertising as having the second greatest effect on susceptibility, after current or past tobacco use, while perceived harmfulness reduced the likelihood of susceptibility.

Prof Simone Pettigrew, lead author and Program Director of Health Promotion and Behaviour Change at The George Institute said, “These findings suggest that an overwhelming number of young people may be at risk of e-cigarette use in India and in other countries. A complete ban on e-cigarette advertising along with raising awareness on its harmful effects should be considered to reduce the high level of susceptibility among the youth.”

Results from 456 people surveyed in India who had never used e-cigarettes before showed that 51% were curious about them, 49% would use them if offered by a friend, and 44% had intentions to use them in the next year. Researchers also found that almost half (47%) of Indian respondents had seen e-cigarette advertising. These results were comparable to the UK (63%), China (51%), and Australia (30%) where the study also took place.

It is to be noted that the majority of the Indian respondents in this study had a higher education and could be categorized in the high-income group. However, they were less likely to believe that e-cigarettes are addictive (66%) or harmful (66%) compared to those in Australia (87% and 83%, respectively), where susceptibility was the lowest (54%).

The tobacco market in India is one of the largest in the world. According to WHO around 27% of the Indian population use tobacco in some form. In 2019 India introduced the Prohibition of Electronic Cigarettes (Production, Manufacture, Import, Export, Transport, Sale, Distribution, Storage and Advertisement) Act to protect its significant young population from the harms of e-cigarettes. However, despite the huge penalties young people still have access to e-cigarettes through non-compliant retailers without featuring any health warning.

“There is a growing concern that young people in India are becoming increasingly susceptible to the use of e-cigarettes. Urgent interventions and comprehensive campaigns addressing the risks and impact of e-cigarette use are imperative,” said Sudhir Raj Thout, Research Fellow, The George Institute India

Dr Ana-Catarina Pinho-Gomes, Honorary Research Fellow at The George Institute UK said, “Many young people worldwide are trialing e-cigarettes despite the unknown health effects of their long-term use. Harmful chemicals in unregistered products are a major concern, as is the often-unlabelled amount of nicotine, which is highly addictive. To discourage further uptake of e-cigarettes among young people who have never smoked, the government needs to do more to educate on their negative effects.”