Ban on disposable vapes would affect one in seven young adults

decorative A ban on disposable vapes, currently being considered by the UK Government, would affect one in seven young adults (aged 18-24) in Great Britain, and one in 20 adults overall, according to a new study led by UCL researchers. The study, funded by Cancer Research UK and published in the journal Public Health , looked at survey responses from 69,973 adults in England, Wales and Scotland between January 2021 and August 2023. The researchers found the proportion of adults using disposable e-cigarettes rose from 0.1% to 4.9% during that period. The increase was particularly pronounced among 18- to 24-year-olds, with 14.4% using disposable vapes in 2023, as well as among smokers (16.3%) and people who had stopped smoking in the past year (18. Use among people who had never regularly smoked was relatively rare (1.5%) but was higher among 18- to 24-year-olds, of whom 7.1% used disposable e-cigarettes and had never regularly smoked tobacco. Lead author Dr Sarah Jackson (UCL Institute of Epidemiology & Health Care), said: "Our study suggests a ban on disposable e-cigarettes would affect an estimated 2.6 million people in England, Wales and Scotland. "This group includes about 316,000 18- to 24-year-olds who currently use disposables but who have never regularly smoked tobacco.