WHO Sounds Alarm on Youth Vaping as Global E‑Cigarette Use Tops 100 Million

Overview

• The new WHO report, released October 6, provides the first global estimate of e‑cigarette use, finding more than 100 million users, including at least 15 million adolescents aged 13–15.
• Across countries with data, 13–15‑year‑olds are about nine times more likely than adults to use vapes.
• At least 86 million adult users are concentrated in high‑income countries, based on 2,034 national surveys covering roughly 97% of the world’s population.
• WHO urges governments to raise taxes, tighten advertising and marketing rules, strengthen regulation of e‑cigarettes, and expand cessation support.
• Conventional tobacco use continues to decline to about 1.2 billion users in 2024, even as WHO leaders warn the industry is pivoting to new nicotine products that target young people.