Vaping has risen by 10 per cent among 15 to 29-year-olds in the past year alone, with one in three telling the Burnet Institute’s 2025 Sex, Drugs and Rock ‘n’ Roll survey they vape.

It found that participants rated the harmfulness of vaping at an average of 89 out of 100, suggesting a strong awareness of health risks despite widespread use.

Vaping can expose users to chemicals and toxins to can cause adverse health effects, peak health bodies warn. 

Nearly 63 per cent of respondents reported having used vapes or e-cigarettes during their lifetime, with curiosity and peer influence the most common reason for starting.

In 2019, just five per cent of respondents had reported vaping.

“What this survey shows is a real disconnect between awareness and behaviour,” Burnet Institute Head of Young People’s Health Megan Lim said. 

“Young people clearly understand that vaping can be harmful, but that knowledge alone isn’t enough to prevent use.”

The Victorian study, which captured the insights of more than a 1000 young people, also found that alcohol use remains widespread, with 95 per cent of young people reporting drinking alcohol in the past year.

“The pattern isn’t clear from the numbers, but we found a statically significant downward trend over 10 years after adjusting for changes in demographics,” Lim added.

More than 70 per cent had used drugs at some point over the past year, while 45 per cent had done so in the past month. 

The most common substances included marijuana and MDMA, although the use of ketamine and cocaine has steadily been increasing.

The survey also found knowledge gaps remain for young people on sexual health.

Participants answered only four out of six sexual health questions correctly, with just 50 per cent aware that chlamydia can cause infertility in women and 56 per cent knowing it can be diagnosed with a urine test.

Young people surveyed also reported that while some sexual health topics are covered in school-based education, others are largely overlooked.

The most-well covered topics included consent education and contraception, while types of sex, abnormal period symptoms and sexual pleasure were identified as major gaps within teaching.

“Many are missing out on basic, practical sexual health education that helps them make informed decisions about their bodies and relationships,” Lim says.

Meanwhile, in other new nicotine-related research, Melbourne’s Royal Children’s Hospital’s (RCH) National Child Health Poll has revealed that many teens are using nicotine without realising how addictive it is or how quickly they can become dependent.

Dr Anthea Rhodes, a paediatrician and director of the poll, said the research also suggests a disconnect between what teens report using and what parents know.

“With so many parents unaware their child uses nicotine, and many parents feeling unsure they could recognise the signs of dependence or help their child quit, teens could be left without the support to quit,” Rhodes shared.

The 40th edition of the National Child Health Poll surveyed more than 2000 parents and 1400 children aged 12-17 about children’s nicotine use, awareness and attitudes.

Dr Moya Vandeleur, a respiratory and sleep paediatrician at the RCH, said even nicotine’s immediate effects have worrying implications for teenagers.

“Nicotine acts as a stimulant, which can disturb sleep, and worsen anxiety and mood, all things many young people are already struggling with,” she explained.

“Adding nicotine into the mix makes these problems even harder to tackle.”

Vandeleur said nicotine products of all types, smoked or smokeless, carry risks.

“We know younger people with developing brains can rewire their brains and become addicted more easily to nicotine and then other substances.”

(with AAP)