Why we think electronic cigarettes don’t encourage young people to take up smoking.

It has been much debated recently on whether electronic cigarettes are going to encourage young people to take up smoking tobacco cigarettes, however studies disagree with this.

Electronic cigarettes are marketed at those looking for a tobacco cigarette alternative, and surveys carried out have consistently shown that its not the gateway to smoking tobacco.

Its been argued that the flavours available make electronic cigarettes more attractive to minors, however it appears unlikely that young people would start on these flavours and switch to a bitter tasting tobacco cigarette. In fact most smokers even long term ones do not like the taste of tobacco cigarettes and like the alternatives that electronic cigarettes offer.

In terms of cost, although electronic cigarettes are cheaper in the long term, the start up costs are usually higher initially which could be seen to make them less attractive to a young person.

It appears that although this is a hotly debated topic, there is no current evidence to support the view that electronic cigarettes encourage young people to take up smoking tobacco cigarettes.