About 1 in 10 middle (3.3%) and high (14.1%) school students used e-cigarettes in the past 30 days, according to findings that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), in coordination with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, reported in October 2022. In total, 2.5 million middle and high school students currently use e-cigarettes.

In FDA’s 2022 National Youth Tobacco Survey, nearly 85% of youth e-cigarette users said that they used flavored e-cigarettes and more than 1 in 4 (27.6%) reported using e-cigarettes daily.

“FDA remains deeply concerned about e-cigarette use among our nation’s youth. It’s clear that we still have a serious public health problem that threatens the years of progress we have made combatting youth tobacco product use,” Robert M. Califf, MD, FDA commissioner, said. “We cannot and will not let our guard down on this issue. FDA remains steadfast in its commitment to using the full range of our authorities to address youth e-cigarette use head-on.”

With youth e-cigarette and vaping habits at an alarming high, nurses must advocate for regulation and research on the tobacco products and the marketing strategies their manufacturers engage to promote them to underage users.