86% of Hong Kong Teens Use Vaping Devices, a Worrying Trend

According to a report from Hong Kong's Sing Tao Daily on the 29th, a study by the University of Hong Kong shows that the proportion of young people aged 25 or under in Hong Kong using new tobacco products such as e-cigarettes and heated tobacco has reached a record high of 85.9% in the 2019-2020 academic year, an increase of 13 percentage points from the previous year, marking the third consecutive year of increase, which is concerning.

The "Hong Kong University Youth Smoking Cessation Hotline" survey shows that 51.3% of the surveyed youth indicated that their primary reason for using new tobacco products is curiosity, followed by peer influence (37.3%), and the desire to use new tobacco products to quit smoking or reduce cigarette consumption (21.6%). Respondents generally believe that new tobacco products are "healthier" than traditional tobacco products, mistakenly thinking they can help quit smoking, which has the opposite effect, inadvertently encouraging them to use more new tobacco products. Additionally, respondents mentioned being attracted by the diverse online promotions, trendy packaging, and design, and friends often recommend and share with each other.

The regulation of traditional paper tobacco in Hong Kong, Macau, and Taiwan is very strict, but e-cigarettes, as a "new phenomenon" that has emerged in recent years, have remained in a gray area. In October 2018, Chief Executive Carrie Lam announced in her second policy address that Hong Kong would fully ban e-cigarettes. The Hong Kong government subsequently formally submitted a draft to the Legislative Council, proposing to ban the import, manufacture, sale, distribution, and promotion of e-cigarettes or heated tobacco products, with a penalty of HKD 50,000 and six months imprisonment for violations. The medical community in Hong Kong believes that e-cigarettes, like traditional cigarettes, contain nicotine, various heavy metals, and formaldehyde, among other potentially harmful compounds, which seriously endanger health. However, the public generally misunderstands their existence, underestimating the impact of e-cigarettes on health, while mistakenly believing that e-cigarettes help with smoking cessation. However, the e-cigarette ban has faced opposition and resistance from many Hong Kong legislators and some groups, who argue that the research data cited in the legislation is inaccurate and that the subjects of the studies are outdated "simulation cigarette" e-cigarette devices, rather than the mainstream products currently on the market. After prolonged struggles, the Legislative Council's Smoking Bill Committee announced last June that it would cease discussions on the ban, temporarily abandoning plans to prohibit new tobacco and vapor e-cigarette products.

Professor Lam Tai-king from the University of Hong Kong's medical school stated that the latest survey results highlight the urgent need for immediate action, urging the Legislative Council to quickly pass the government's submitted draft to comprehensively ban new tobacco products, including e-cigarettes and heated tobacco products.