Vapes: doctors demand real online checks for minors

Spanish family doctors are calling for real checks to stop under-18s buying vapes online or getting them through third parties. The demand was made in Madrid on Friday, 18 September, as Spain prepares a tobacco bill covering minors’ access to the products. The Spanish Society of Family and Community Medicine says a ban means little if teenagers can still obtain electronic cigarettes easily.

José Manuel Iglesias and María Iglesias, who coordinate the Semana Sin Humo campaign for the society’s tobacco group, also want action on advertising, especially on social media, alongside ongoing prevention work.

Why vapes can look harmless

Vapes can seem safer than they are, the doctors warn. Many teenagers do not see vaping as smoking because the devices do not resemble cigarettes, smell different and can come in appealing flavours. Social pressure and the digital environment can further lower their sense of risk.

The group says schools need more than one talk a year. Young people should learn what vapes contain, how they can cause dependence, and how advertising and social media work. New devices and ways of using them are appearing constantly, it adds.

Nicotine and the risk of dependence

The doctors say vapes are not harmless and can often lead to tobacco use. They cite evidence that teenagers who start using electronic cigarettes are far more likely later to try conventional cigarettes. In 80 percent of cases, tobacco use begins before the age of 20; tobacco is the leading cause of lung cancer, the cancer with the highest mortality.

Nicotine can affect the developing teenage brain, including attention, learning and impulse control, they say. The latest ESTUDES survey found that 49.5 percent of 14- to 18-year-olds had used electronic cigarettes at least once, while 27.1 percent had done so in the past month. For conventional cigarettes, the figures were 27.3 percent and 15.5 percent respectively.

The society says the message must be clear: behind what may look like a simple accessory there is often nicotine and a product capable of causing dependence.

Topics: Social affairs · Health

Source: Europa Press / Mallorca.com