Becky Freeman: Australian and New Zealand Journal of Public Health article co-author on the link between youth vaping and smoking

There’s concern youth vaping could be creating a new generation of smokers. 

Australian and New Zealand Journal of Public Health research reveals Aussie teens who pick up vaping are five times more likely to start smoking. 

It found the link was strongest for those at the younger end of the age range, with 12-year-olds 29 times more likely. 

Co-Author Becky Freeman told Mike Hosking the focus has been on cessation for ex-smokers for too long. 

She says 14-year-olds aren't using vaping to quit smoking, they're using it because they're curious. 

LISTEN ABOVE 

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Health related New research out of Australia on the links
between vaping as a teenager and going on to be
a smoker. Survey of more than fiveenty twelve to seventeen
year olds, If you vape, your five times more likely
to end up smoking, first of its kind study in Australia,
says your professor, Becky Freeman, study supervisor at the University
of Sydney, is with us Bickie Morning, Good morning. I
seed years ago that replacing vaping or tobacco with vaping

(00:22):
was going to lead to this, and I'm no genius.
Why didn't more people see it?

Speaker 2 (00:29):
You know? I think that people were just overly focused
on that this was going to be some sort of
you know, miracle cure for people who were smokers to
switch to vaping, and didn't consider that these products would
be marketed to kids, come in fruit flavors that appeal
to kids, and be so widely available and easily accessible.

Speaker 1 (00:46):
Do you still subscribe in any way, shape or form
to the cessation tool argument or not? Really?

Speaker 2 (00:51):
Look, I think there should be a pathway for that
very small number of smokers who've tried everything they can
to quit and under the care and support of a
health professional use these products to fully quit, but that
does not mean they should be available in you know,
lolly flavors and sold that petrol stations to twelve year old.

Speaker 1 (01:07):
And the number of kids who do it recreationally as
a percentage, do we have any idea?

Speaker 2 (01:12):
Look, young kids are are not quitting smoking. You know,
when you're fourteen years old and you see a product
on a shelf that comes in a unicorn sparkly package
and is sold in apple mint flavor, you're not using
that to quit smoking. You're using that because you're curious
and the industry has targeted you.

Speaker 1 (01:28):
Indeed, and we looked to Australia from New Zealand, they
were going to crack down on this with some rules
and they backed out of this. Has this been a
disappointment and that will long term cause more problems, do
you think or not?

Speaker 2 (01:39):
Well, what we have in Australia now is all the
cigarettes must be sold in pharmacies from behind the counter.
So we had been pushing for a prescription only system
from pharmacies that you had to have a description from
a doctor. That did get watered down to now you
can just purchase it from behind the counter. So it
is a bit disappointing, but we are very grateful that

(01:59):
they will no longer be so available to kids. And
of course the vapes and pharmacies are only going to
come in tobacco and mint flavor. They're no longer these
disposable products that were so cheap and so readily available
to kids, So it's an entirely different product and approach.

Speaker 1 (02:13):
Becky, appreciate you getting up early in astrategy for a
Spekey Freeman, University of Sydney's supervisor. For more from the
Mic Asking Breakfast, listen live to news talks. It'd be
from six am weekdays, or follow the podcast on iHeartRadio