A report by Growing Up in Ireland found that one in ten Irish teenagers have tried vaping
The study surveyed more than 6,000 teenagers, and found that nearly 10% of them have tried vaping. This is compared to only 3% that have smoked a cigarette.
The study found that children from single parent households were more likely to have vaped compared to children from two-parent households.
Children with parent smokers were also much more likely to have tried smoking before.
The participants were also asked if they thought vaping was more or less harmful than smoking.
According to the survey, 11% thought that vaping was more harmful, 24% believed it be less harmful than smoking cigarettes, and 44% said that vaping was equally harmful as smoking.
21% responded that they didn’t know which was more harmful.
A ban on the sale of vaping products to under 18s has been in place since January. Micheál Martin said he hoped to ban all disposable vapes by the end of 2024:
“I just think it’s shocking the number of young people who are on the vapes now and it seems to be the replacement for the cigarettes.”
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