The World Health Organization (WHO) has warned that more than 100 million people worldwide — including at least 15 million children — are now using e-cigarettes, sparking a new wave of nicotine addiction among youth.
According to WHO data, children are on average nine times more likely than adults to vape, with experts warning that this growing trend threatens to undermine decades of progress in tobacco control.
Dr. Etienne Krug from WHO said e-cigarettes are fueling a “new wave” of addiction:
“They are marketed as harm reduction, but in reality, they are hooking kids on nicotine earlier and risk undermining decades of progress,” he cautioned.
WHO Director-General Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus accused the tobacco industry of “aggressively targeting young people”, introducing new nicotine products in response to declining global smoking rates.
“Governments must act faster and stronger in implementing proven tobacco-control policies,” he urged.
The WHO report estimates that as of February 2025, 86 million adult e-cigarette users were concentrated mainly in high-income countries, while 15 million adolescents aged 13–15 were already vaping, based on surveys from 123 countries.
Despite growing concern, 62 countries still have no e-cigarette regulations, and 74 have no legal minimum age for purchase, the report noted.
Meanwhile, traditional tobacco use has been steadily declining—from 1.38 billion users in 2000 to 1.2 billion in 2024. The most significant drop was seen among women (from 11% in 2010 to 6.6% in 2024), while male tobacco use fell from 41.4% to 32.5% in the same period.
However, one in five adults globally still uses tobacco, keeping smoking a leading cause of preventable diseases, including cancer.
Experts emphasize that while vaping is less harmful than smoking and can help some smokers quit, it is not safe for non-smokers, particularly children. E-cigarettes contain nicotine, an addictive substance, though they do not produce tar or carbon monoxide — the most harmful components of traditional tobacco smoke.
