Study finds 14% of Vietnamese students tried e-cigarettes despite ban

The study, conducted by the Hanoi University of Public Health and partners, surveyed 2,462 students aged 18–24 in Hanoi, Hue City, Da Nang City, and Ho Chi Minh City, and included observations at 126 retail outlets and 24 in-depth interviews.

The study found that 14 percent of the students had tried e-cigarettes, with three percent currently using them. 

Meanwhile, six percent had experimented with heated tobacco products, and 0.8 percent were active users.

The average age of first use was 16.9 years.

More than 62 percent of the students said they believed e-cigarettes and heated tobacco products could help them quit conventional smoking.

Le Thi Thanh Huong, vice-rector of the Hanoi University of Public Health, said a ban on the sale, advertising, and promotion of such products took effect on January 1, 2025 under a National Assembly resolution, but usage and exposure to advertising among students in major cities remained high.

The study found that 64 percent of the 126 outlets surveyed that previously sold the products had closed after the prohibition took effect, while about 35 percent shifted to online sales or coverted distribution through cafés and existing customer networks.

About 39 percent of the students reported exposure to advertising or promotions for e-cigarettes and heated tobacco products in the past 30 days, including on Facebook, TikTok, YouTube, and search engines.

According to the study, sellers used coded language and modified images to evade content moderation, while age verification was largely absent.

Nguyen Thi Bich Thao, a member of the research team, said use of the products was linked to advertising exposure, peer influence, and prior cigarette smoking.

Bui Thi Thu Giang, program manager at Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids, said that between 2018 and 2025, about 3.4 billion pieces of content promoting new tobacco products were recorded across more than 60 countries, reaching around 385 million accounts, about 40 percent of them under age 25.