“Take it away, throw it away,” the State Secretary says to parents of children who vape

“If you’re a mom or dad, take it away, throw it away and make sure your kids don’t use it.” That is the response of State Secretary Karremans (VVD) of Youth, Prevention and Sport to the news that at least fourteen children have ended up in hospital in the past year as a result of vaping.

A 15-year-old girl and a 17-year-old boy had to be admitted to intensive care. Other children suffered from a collapsed lung, pulmonary hemorrhage or decline in lung function.

Vaping is not healthier than smoking, says Karremans:

According to Karremans, 20 percent of children between the ages of 12 and 18 vape. These are almost always flavored vapes. They are illegal and we don’t know what is in them, says Karremans. “The health effects are immense. No parent wants this for his or her child.”

Flavored vapes have been banned since 2020. Yet they are still offered in many places. The problem is that the NVWA regulator has far too few people, says Karremans, and that sellers have to be caught red-handed if an inspector wants to intervene.

The government is working on that. Hundreds of millions more have already been made available to deploy more inspectors next year. The government is also working on legislation to make it easier to tackle sellers.

The Netherlands cannot introduce a total ban on vaping, including vapes without added flavors, alone. This must be arranged at European level, says Karremans. And the government is committed to this.

For the time being, it is therefore up to the government, parents, education and sports clubs to discourage children from vaping. Karremans mainly focuses on parents. “We all have to do it together. We will enforce more, but I also need parents to take stricter action against their children.”

He thinks children understand when parents talk to them about it. “No child wants to end up in the hospital with a collapsed lung or blood lung.”

According to Karremans, every 5 children between the ages of 12 and 18 vape. These are almost always flavored vapes. In addition, 70 percent of children who vape also smoke. Anyone who thinks that vaping is less harmful than smoking is wrong.

“These are illegal products,” says Karremans. “It often comes from China. Half the time we don’t know what it does and what it contains. There is a lot of junk in it. The health effects are immense. No parent wants this for their child.”

Flavored vapes have been banned since 2020. Yet they are still offered in many places. The problem is that the NVWA regulator has far too few people, says Karremans, and that sellers have to be caught red-handed if an inspector wants to intervene.

The government is working on that. Hundreds of millions more have already been made available to deploy more inspectors next year. The government is also working on legislation to make it easier to tackle sellers.

The Netherlands cannot introduce a total ban on vaping, including vapes without added flavors, alone. This must be arranged at European level, says Karremans. And the government is committed to this.

For the time being, it is therefore up to the government, parents, education and sports clubs to discourage children from vaping. Karremans mainly focuses on parents. “We all have to do it together. We will enforce more, but I also need parents to take stricter action against their children.”

He thinks children understand when parents talk to them about it. “No child wants to end up in the hospital with a collapsed lung or blood lung.”