A psychology expert has revealed the action that parents should take if they believe their children are vaping - and how to approach a conversation around the difficult topic.
Vaping has seen a huge increase in popularity in the last 18 months, with thousands of people in Ireland using the likes of Elf Bar flavoured disposable ecigarettes.
Apart from the damaging effects they have on the climate, doctors have warned that the vapes could be equally as damaging to the user's body as they contain nicotine.
The topic came up on Today with Claire Byrne on Monday morning on RTÉ Radio after a parent had texted into the show saying that their teenage daughter had started vaping recently.
The parent in question believed that she had never smoked, but found vaping "disgusting" and that she believed that the daughter thinks it's 'harmless or cool, and all of her friends vape too'.
"I worry it's addictive and that she might be using it as an appetite suppressant," the concerned parent concluded.
Claire had been joined in studio by Dr David Coleman, Clinical Child Psychologist and Adjunct Associate Professor in the School of Psychology in UCD.
He advised the concerned mother: "It's a very significant problem. The evidence is there that because vapes contain nicotine, they are absolutely addictive as much as cigarettes are. The fact that it becomes part of a social connection, it's another thing that makes them part of a particular group makes it very hard to resist it.
"If you are one of that cohort who will become addicted, it becomes really really difficult. The mother is right to be concerned. She is absolutely right to be talking to her daughter."
Dr Coleman did note that language is crucial to how you approach the issue, saying: "I'd move away from the language to talk about being disgusting. Go back to the things she's actually worried about - the appetite suppressing, the reasons that are not healthy for her - as opposed to disgusting.
"That's a judgement about vaping and people who vape that her daughter will reject out of hand and will fight against that characterisation.
"If you can focus on the behaviour that is problematic, like 'your clothes smell, you might think it's nice, but actually the vape smells nearly as bad as cigarettes, I think you use it so don't have to eat, so that you fit into a crowd'.
"We know teens will be keen to fit in anyway, that's not necessarily a bad thing, but these are the conversations you need to be having, not the 'disgusting' line."
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