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Recent Study: The “Cool” Factor Not Flavours is What Drives Most Teens to Vape

The latest research from the University of Michigan, has shown that as was the case with cigarette smoking in the past, the main motivator behind teen vaping is the “cool” factor derived from using e-cigarettes.

Diane Caruana

June 16, 2020

Less than 5% of the participants mentioned the availability of fruity flavours as a motivator for them to start vaping.

“The message about the dangers of smoking tobacco was just getting through, and then vaping came along and we may now have a whole new generation addicted to nicotine,” said study author Tammy Chang. Published in in JAMA Pediatrics, the MyVoice study responses were gathered via a text-message survey aimed at teens and young adults aged between 14 and 24.

The researchers found that nearly two-thirds of the study participants said that the social aspects of vaping, or rather “looking cool”, is what drives them to use Juul and other electronic devices. Less than 5% of the participants mentioned the availability of fruity flavours as a motivator for them to start vaping.

The availability of a higher nicotine content is what may be addicting teens in North America

Meanwhile, with regards to nicotine addiction, another recent study looking at vaping behaviour amongst Canadian teens, has found that the higher nicotine content available in North America as opposed to Europe, may be to blame for increased vaping rates.

Within the EU, the Tobacco Products Directive (TPD) which came into effect in May 2017, bans the sales of nicotine containing e-liquids above 20 mg/ml. Public health experts have long argued that setting nicotine caps on safer alternatives such as vaping products would have a detrimental effect on national smoking rates, pushing former smokers who had switched to go back to smoking.

However on the flipside, the regulation may be having a positive effect on teen vaping rates, ensuring that teens do not become addicted to nicotine. The Canadian survey of more than 12,000 young adults aged between 16 and 19, conducted between 2017 and 2019, found that the number participants reporting previous month use had more than doubled, from 8.4% in 2017 to 17.8% in 2019.