Concerns grow over youth vaping in the Philippines; group calls for product sales guidelines

Data from the Philippines show that despite relevant bans, young people remain a target market for tobacco products, with 11% of students aged 10 to 15 having tried e-cigarettes.

According to a news report on September 19, although the Philippines has clear bans in place on the sale and distribution of all kinds of tobacco products, especially e-cigarettes, in or around schools, recent studies indicate that many retailers have failed to comply. Repeated illegal sales have triggered fears of a vaping “epidemic” that could sweep through the country’s youth. 

To protect young people from being lured into smoking and using various tobacco products, and to reduce and ultimately ban the sale of tobacco products to minors, the Philippines has issued rules prohibiting the sale, display, and promotion of e-cigarettes and heated tobacco products in schools and surrounding areas. Despite these measures, recent research has revealed that young people are still being targeted by the tobacco market. A study conducted from December 2022 to January 2023 identified more than 2,000 locations selling tobacco products within 100 meters of at least 276 schools. Among them, e-cigarettes were easily found mainly in convenience stores and vape shops. 

Data from the Philippine Pediatric Society show that 11% of students aged 10 to 15 have tried e-cigarettes. The Department of Education (DepEd) said that 6.7% of students in Grades 7 to 9 have tried and are currently using e-cigarettes. The main reasons for use are easy access (32%), a wide variety of flavors (22%), and the belief that e-cigarettes are safer than combustible cigarettes (17%). 

This situation has raised serious concerns, as businesses in the vaping market are using cunning marketing tactics to hook Filipino youth on nicotine, threatening their health. 

Child rights and health protection groups in the Philippines have called on the Department of Education and the Commission on Higher Education to issue guidelines on e-cigarette sales, while also banning the sale of these products within 200 meters of schools and other youth activity centers, including elementary schools, junior and senior high schools, colleges, universities, residential areas, and recreational facilities for those under 18. Strict enforcement of policies banning the sale and promotion of tobacco products in and around schools can help protect the well-being of Filipino youth and reduce tobacco-related deaths and disease.