Summarised by Centrist
Vaping has failed to cut teen smoking in New Zealand, according to new research published in The Lancet. The study shows that from 1999 to 2023, the decline in daily smoking among 14- to 15-year-olds continued at a similar rate despite the rise of e-cigarettes.
This contradicts a widely cited 2020 study, which claimed vaping may have displaced smoking between 2014 and 2019.
Asthma and Respiratory Foundation NZ CEO Letitia Harding said the new findings should put an end to
claims that youth vaping is helping end smoking. “This new study sets the record straight,” she said, warning that tobacco companies used the earlier research to lobby against tighter rules. “They do not have the interests of our teens at heart.”
The Foundation is calling for tougher restrictions, including halting new Specialist Vape Retailers, reducing nicotine content to 20 mg/mL, and considering a prescription-only model. Harding said the Government must now accept that vaping has created a “new problem” for teens, not solved the old one.
New vaping restrictions are set to roll out from now until June, including a ban on disposables, product displays, and giveaways. The Foundation backs these steps but says more action is urgently needed.
