Content warning: This article discusses addiction and mental health. 

Vaping makes Clare feel ugly and embarrassed but despite that, she can’t stop. 

Clare, who’s using a different name to remain anonymous, is 21 and began vaping seven years ago when she was a teenager working in hospitality. 

“There was no need for me to get into it. I didn’t know what it was, I had no desire. 

“I had managers who were like ‘try this cigarette’ and I didn’t like that and then I had friends who were like ‘try my vape’ and I was like ‘yep that’s me.’”

What vaping looks like in a day

On a work day, Clare will go outside at least five times for a vape. At home, she vapes in her room and on a night out, she says she’s “attached to it”. 

Not only does Clare judge herself for vaping, she feels judgement from her family too. 

She says it feels like they look down on her and like the older generation don’t understand why she would do that to her body. 

“The biggest thing I get embarrassed about is when I go to a nice dinner with my family and I’ll get up and go outside for a vape, I see everyone watching me. 

“I’m sitting at dinner and going outside for a vape is all I can think about. I always try to get an outside table so we can sit outside and vape and eat.“

She’s not alone either. 

Adolescents in Aotearoa who struggle with vaping addiction feel judged by the adults in their lives, new research from the University of Otago, Wellington have found.

Young people attracted to vaping for social aspects

The researchers interviewed 20 New Zealanders between the ages of 16 and 18, who described themselves as moderately to heavily addicted to vaping

Study co-leader Anna Graham-DeMello, a Research Fellow in the University’s ASPIRE Aotearoa Research Centre, says the young people spoke of feeling stigmatised and unsupported by family members. 

Some also felt teachers and other adults were antagonistic towards them.

“Though young people understood the criticism could be coming from a caring place, many of our participants resented comments on their vaping. Instead of helping them manage their addiction, the criticism diminished their sense of self-worth.”

In Aotearoa, 10.5% of 15 to 17 year olds and 26.5% of 18 to 24 year olds vape daily. Māori are two-and-a-half times more likely to vape than non-Māori. 

The young people in the study were attracted to vaping by its social aspect, particularly as 

vaping had become a normal part of their environment, Graham-DeMello says. 

She says those in the study had felt immune to addiction, despite the warnings, and had believed they would be able to vape only when they wished while socialising.

“Many of the young people interviewed felt resentful and even disgusted by their addiction. They desperately wanted to overcome their addiction, but they felt alone in that struggle.”

The affordability can make it hard to stop

Clare can relate. 

“I wish I didn’t start because I can’t stop. It’s so hard, I’ve tried to give up before and I go half a day before I get agitated.”

She’s even gone to the doctor to try and get help quitting, and used nicotine patches and gum, which she says tasted disgusting so it didn’t help. 

Clare calculated that her years of vaping have cost roughly $3600 with her spending $10 a week on it. The affordability is what makes it so hard for her to stop. 

“If it was $60 I would probably give up. It’s affordable and smells nice, it keeps me going,” she says. 

“I try to hide it, I’ve thrown them in the bin before but I just always go back.”

Clare says the majority of her friends vape so she is constantly surrounded by the culture. 

However she says they all say how they all want to stop too but don’t know how. 

“My Uber driver this morning saw me vaping while I was waiting and when I got in said ‘you can vape in here if you want, it’s all good’. There’s enablers everywhere.”

Clare says she thinks the only way she would be able to stop was if she got a health diagnosis which meant she couldn’t vape or become pregnant. 

She doesn’t currently have any health issues related to vaping and says she keeps an active lifestyle to try and avoid any complications. 

“I try to justify my vaping with a balance of exercise, it makes me feel less bad about it.

“It will take a lot for people in my generation to give up and there’s not a lot of support.”

What’s the Government doing 

The research team say the Government needs to do more, including ending the sale of vaping products in generic retailers, such as dairies and service stations.

Close monitoring of the Government’s plans to end disposable vape sales is required, given retailers’ efforts to undermine previous policies, the researchers say.

Associate Health Minister Casey Costello said legislation banning disposable vapes and significantly increasing penalties for illegal sales was passed by Parliament last Thursday evening. 

“Vaping has played a key role in helping people quit smoking, and we want vapes available to adults as a cessation tool, but it isn’t for children and young people and that’s why the Government has taken action around this.

“The Smokefree Environments and Regulated Products Amendment Bill (No 2) is aimed at preventing youth vaping and puts in place practical changes and a much stronger regulatory regime.”  

Costello says single use vape devices will be banned outright - getting rid of vapes that are most popular among young people. 

The Bill includes four main changes including:

- banning the manufacture, sale, supply, and distribution of disposable vapes 

- increasing penalties for unlawful sales of regulated products to minors 

- imposing retail visibility restrictions for vaping products 

- adding further proximity restrictions for specialist vape retailers

“We have introduced penalties for breaching the ban; up to $400,000 for a manufacturer, importer or large retailer, and $50,000 for any other person. 

“We have also significantly increased the penalties for retailers who illegally sell vapes, cigarettes and other regulated products to young people.”

The maximum fine for selling vapes or other regulated products to under-18s will increase from between $5,000-10,000 up to a maximum of $100,000. 

The penalty for infringement offences will rise from $500 to $1,000 for individuals and to $2,000 for businesses.

“In addition, vaping products and their packaging are now covered by new visibility restrictions,” Costello says. 

“Specialist vape retailers are prohibited from displaying vaping products and their packages if they are visible from outside the store. General vape retailers (mostly supermarkets, petrol stations and dairies) will be subject to the same rules that currently apply to other regulated products such as cigarettes.”

Under the new legislation, those applying to set up a new specialist vape retail store must be at least 100 metres from the boundary of a licensed early childhood service.

This builds on the existing requirement to be at least 300 metres from a marae or school.

“This is a package of common-sense and practical measures that will be welcomed by parents, teachers and health professionals.” 

‘Protect Your Breath’

Te Whatu Ora - Health New Zealand has a number of supports in place for vaping specifically designed for young people. 

They run a campaign called ‘Protect Your Breath’, which is designed by and for rangatahi across Aotearoa New Zealand. 

It aims to reduce vaping harm amongst young people and get them to think critically about why they vape. 

It provides key information to raise awareness and suggested alternatives in a non-judgemental way to prevent vaping harm.

Health NZ also has vaping resources such as:

- Let's Clear the Air, a publication which provides information about youth vaping and ways to support the vapefree and smokefree kaupapa in schools. 

- Connect to Hā, an audio series about the importance of hā (breath). Listeners can press play to take a moment to pause, connect to their breath, and think about how it fuels everything we do. It uses a strengths-based approach and helps young people to think critically about the choices they make. 

- The Vapefree Schools webpage which provides information to support schools and parents to have conversations about vaping and to reduce vaping harm. 

“Both internationally and in New Zealand, more research is needed into the prevalence of vaping, its long-term health effects, understanding motivations and effective prevention strategies,” a spokesperson said in a statement. 

“Vaping cessation strategies need to be grounded in research to ensure they address the specific behaviours, motivations and needs of young people.”

Where to get help:

• 1737: The nationwide, 24/7 mental health support line. Call or text 1737 to speak to a trained counsellor.
• Suicide Crisis Line: Free call 0508 TAUTOKO or 0508 828 865. Nationwide 24/7 support line operated by experienced counsellors with advanced suicide prevention training. 
• Youthline: Free call 0800 376 633, free text 234. Nationwide service focused on supporting young people.
• OUTLine NZ: Freephone 0800 OUTLINE (0800 688 5463). National service that helps LGBTIQ+ New Zealanders access support, information and a sense of community. 
• Quitline: Quitline can help you create a personalised quit smoking plan. Call 0800 778 778, text 4006 or visit the Quitline website

Vaping was supposed to stop people from smoking. But instead, it's gotten a new generation hooked on nicotine.

High School student Matt* has never smoked a cigarette in his life, but he’s been vaping since he was just 14-years-old. 

Young New Zealanders say they aren’t connecting with media coverage and campaigns about vaping because they don’t see themselves reflected in them.