Number of children trying e cigarettes doubles in a year

Oliver Moody
The Times
The data suggested that young people did not understand that e-cigarettes were much safer than tobacco
The data suggested that young people did not understand that e-cigarettes were much safer than tobacco
SPENCER PLATT/GETTY IMAGES
Oliver Moody
The Times

The number of children and teenagers who have tried electronic cigarettes almost doubled last year, academics have found.

However, the authors of the study said there was no evidence that the devices were a gateway for the young to smoking cigarettes.

Researchers from Public Health England, the charity Action on Smoking and Health (Ash) and several universities analysed two YouGov surveys on e-cigarette use and attitudes among under-18s.

Writing in Public Health, they described a “substantial increase in awareness and use of e-cigarettes in young people”. The proportion who had tried vaping rose from 4.6 per cent to 8.2 per cent, equivalent to a rise from about 190,000 young people to 340,000. The number who used e-cigarettes regularly rose from 0.9 per cent to