Experts Raise Alarm Over Rising Vaping Trend in South African Schools

Cape Town Health experts have raised concern over the growing use of vaping among school learners, warning that the practice poses serious health risks. The concerns were presented during public hearings on the Tobacco Products and Electronic Delivery Systems Control Bill of 2022, held this week in Parliament.

The bill seeks to tighten tobacco regulations by banning product displays at points of sale, enforcing plain packaging, and prohibiting vending machine sales of tobacco products.

Professor Richard van Zyl-Smith of the Lung Infection and Immunity Unit at the University of Cape Town told Parliament’s Health Committee that vaping has rapidly emerged as a worrying trend in schools.

“We have not seen this kind of explosion in vaping before. While tobacco use has always been present, recent surveys show that vaping, though previously low, is now increasing at an alarming rate among learners,” Van Zyl-Smith said.

He stressed that vaping in schools carries serious health implications, warning that stronger controls are necessary to protect young people from long-term harm.