Health authorities are urged to launch a public education campaign to dissuade young people from vaping nicotine.

As Australian Chief Medical Officer Paul Kelly warned Australians on Thursday that vaping could become “the next big health issue after COVID”, experts stressed the need to discourage young people from buying e-cigarettes.

“We definitely need to step up and spend a little more time researching what public health messages would be most effective,” said Billie Bonevski, a Flinders University professor of public health. The new daily.

Nicotine vaping products are illegal in all Australian states and territories unless prescribed by a doctor.

But Professor Bonevski said regulating access and supply is often difficult and ineffective, and current bans are only half the battle.

“Anecdotal evidence suggests that it is still very easy for young people to access e-cigarettes and vapes here in Australia, despite tight controls,” Prof Bonevski said.

“So we probably need a better app, but we probably also need education and public health campaigns to discourage vaping adoption, especially among young people.”

Professor Bonevski said Australian authorities should seek to follow the US Food and Drug Administration, which launched a campaign in May to discourage young Americans from vaping.

The award-winning FDA award The real cost uses creative marketing tactics and advertising developed in consultation with youth to warn them of the risks of nicotine addiction and the harms of vaping.

One ad shows a young woman fishing for a vape in a school toilet, while others use computer-generated visualizations of dangerous heavy metals found in e-cigarettes.

According to the FDA’s website, the campaign was developed using extensive and ongoing research, including focus groups and nationwide surveys of young people from all walks of life.

Professor Bonevski said similar campaigns in Australia were grossly insufficient, as authorities had apparently failed to assess the effectiveness of their messages in discouraging young people from vaping.

“With young people, you can tell them not to do something and they will do the exact opposite,” she said. The new daily.

“So you have to have the research behind what you do so that your language…the imagery and your message is right for your target audience.”

The National Board of Health and Medical Research released a report on the health consequences of e-cigarettes on Thursday.

The report found that one in five Australians aged 18 to 24 who had never smoked said they had tried e-cigarettes, exposing their lungs to more than 200 chemicals and toxins, some of which can be fatal in the event of an illness. ‘inhalation.

Among them were potentially deadly ingredients commonly found in pesticides, disinfectants, paint thinners and industrial cleaning agents, as well as chlorine, mercury, uranium and formaldehyde.

The research was published hours after The Wall Street Journal reported that the FDA plans to ban the sale of popular Juul vape products in the United States.

The regulator previously banned vapes with fruity flavors in 2019 because they appealed more to young people.

But according to FDA data, banned products are still popular among younger vapers.