A long-term intergenerational study found that the likelihood of starting to smoke among people aged 17 in 2018 was about 1.5% if they did not vape compared with 33% if they did according to an article in the Tobacco Control journal *.
While 2018 seems like a long time ago, Action on Smoking and Health crunched numbers this year and found smoking among youths rose from 14% in 2023 to 21% in 2025. **
This brings the level of cigarette smoking among children closer to the 30% of 11 – 17 year olds who smoked in the 1970’s. The increase since 2014 is attributed to increased vaping among 11 – 17 year olds. The above chart shows that children are not using vapes to quit smoking, rather they are picking up smoking after they start vaping.
At the bottom of this article you’ll find URLs for both studies, we encourage you to read the articles then have a conversation with the pre-teens and teens in your family, help them understand the dangers of vaping and offer to help them if they already vape.
At HabitHalo we’re committed to helping people of all ages step down their vaping and we’re concerned about increased rates of teen vaping and smoking. We want parents and other family members to talk to kids then consider using HabitHalo’s RipLok vaping cessation solution which combines an iOS app and connected smart vape case to help them reduce and step down from vaping.
* https://tobaccocontrol.bmj.com/content/early/2025/07/23/tc-2024-059212
** https://ash.org.uk/resources/view/use-of-e-cigarettes-among-young-people-in-great-britain