“We are on the verge of a smoke-free Generation Z in the U.S., yet vaping is being attacked instead of appreciated,” said Michael Landl, Director of the World Vapers' Alliance, in a statement. “This makes no sense. The latest smoking rates clearly show that the myth of vaping being a gateway to smoking needs to be put to rest. Vaping is not a gateway to smoking, but rather one of the key ways to move away from the harms of traditional tobacco.”
According to an article in the New York Post, the low smoking rate could be the result of decades of scientific data and warnings that these products are dangerous to use. About 80% of surveyed American adults said that cigarettes are “very harmful,” while fewer, 57%, said the same about e-cigarettes.
Most respondents also said that chewing tobacco is “very harmful,” but fewer held the same view about cigars, pipes, or nicotine pouches, though seven in ten Americans believe these products are “somewhat harmful.”
Smokers were less likely than non-smokers to say that cigarettes are harmful; 80% of non-smokers said cigarettes are harmful, compared to 58% of smokers. In contrast, 63% of e-cigarette users said vaping is harmful, while 79% of non-vapers believed e-cigarettes are harmful.
