A marked increase in vaping by Alberta young people over the past year is a clear indication that more needs to be done to curb the dangerous new trend.
While efforts to prevent young people from taking up tobacco use have resulted in positive gains in recent years, the rise of vaping is a new public health threat.
In last week’s Throne Speech the provincial government said it plans to introduce legislation to "protect minors from risks associated with vaping." That is good news for Alberta’s young people and for the province’s already hard-pressed health-care system.
In another effort to reverse the youth vaping trend, the Campaign for a Smoke-Free Alberta has launched a new initiative aimed at getting MLAs to take action.
In particular, campaign organizers would like to see strong new legislation passed to curb youth vaping.
The move comes on the heels of a survey that found that 50,000 school-aged young people in Alberta tried vaping in the past month, representing a six-fold increase since 2016.
“The explosive rise in teen vaping has been fuelled by slick and sophisticated marketing campaigns and the promotion of flavoured, high-nicotine strength vaping products,” said Angeline Webb of the Canadian Cancer Society.
She noted that as of 2020 Alberta remains the only provincial government in Canada that has not yet passed vaping legislation, and is calling on that same government to “make up for lost time by approving strong measures” to protect Alberta kids.
Kristyn Berry with the Heart & Stroke Foundation, said, “four out of five Albertans want the Alberta government to align its current restrictions on tobacco products with those on vaping products including a ban on flavoured products. We urge the government to provide Alberta kids with protection from vaping products.”
Les Hagen, with Action on Smoking & Health, says Alberta youth deserve “first-class protection from tobacco and vaping products.”
Hopefully MLAs from all parties will put aside their differences and act to address this public health issue without delay.
Dan Singleton is an editor with the Mountain View Albertan.
