Youth Nicotine Product Use and Regulatory Landscape in Nordic and Baltic Countries: Key Insights

In today’s society, nicotine products are ubiquitous, and their association with adolescents—a vulnerable demographic—has drawn significant attention. A recent report by the Nordic Welfare Centre sheds light on the trends and data surrounding youth nicotine product use in Nordic and Baltic countries, revealing critical patterns and challenges.

1. Traditional Tobacco Use
Nordic Countries
With the exception of Norway, youth smoking rates in Nordic nations have declined:

Denmark: Dropped from 15% (2018) to 12% (2024).
Finland: Decreased from 14% (2018) to 12% (2023).
Iceland: Fell sharply from 12.7% (2018) to 6.6% (2023).
Sweden: Declined from 10% (2018) to 8% (2024).
Norway: Increased from 22% (2018) to 19% (2024), with boys showing a steeper rise (22% to 26%).
Baltic States
Trends here are mixed:

Estonia: Youth smoking decreased from 20% (2018) to 18% (2022).
Lithuania: Declined from 12% (2018) to 10.2% (2024).
Latvia: Surged alarmingly from 15% (2018) to 31.7% (2022).
2. E-Cigarette Use
Since 2018, most Nordic and Baltic countries have seen rapid growth in youth e-cigarette use, particularly post-2021. Iceland is an outlier, with consistently high rates unaffected by market shifts.

Nordic Countries

Denmark: Increased from 5% (2018) to 8.7% (2023).
Finland: Rose from 10% (2018) to 16% (2023).
Norway: Jumped from 5% (2018) to 12% (2024).
Sweden: Grew from 8% (2018) to 10% (2024).
Ukraine: Remained stable at 20% (2018–2023).
Baltic States

Estonia: Increased from 15% (2018) to 25% (2022).
Latvia: Skyrocketed from 10% (2018) to 46.3% (2022).
Lithuania: Declined from 10% (2018) to 20.6% (2024).
Note: In Nordic countries (excluding Iceland), girls now surpass boys in e-cigarette use. Norway’s gender gap is stark: 17% of girls vs. 7% of boys.

3. Oral Nicotine Products
Nordic Countries
All except Finland saw rising youth usage:

Denmark: Oral tobacco use rose from 10% (2018) to 15% (2024).
Iceland: Surged from 20% (2018) to 33% (2024).
Norway: Increased from 15% (2018) to 20% (2024).
Sweden: Remained steady at 22% (2018–2024).
Finland: Held at 9% (2018–2024; data limited to snus).
Baltic States

Estonia: Oral nicotine use tripled from 5.4% (2018) to 17.5% (2022). Data for Latvia and Lithuania are insufficient.
4. Regulatory Measures
(A) Common Frameworks

EU Tobacco Products Directive (TPD): Implemented in 2016 for EU members (Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Latvia, Lithuania, Sweden). Regulates sales, packaging, flavors (e.g., bans on flavored cigarettes), and mandates health warnings. Non-EU EEA members Norway and Iceland partially adopted TPD, with exemptions for oral tobacco (e.g., snus).
WHO FCTC: All countries adhere to this convention, enforcing taxation, smoke-free policies, and labeling rules to curb nicotine addiction.
(B) National Regulatory Differences
Details on country-specific policies (e.g., taxes, flavor bans, sales restrictions) are under discussion.

5. Discussion and Implications
Trends: Youth, especially girls, increasingly favor novel nicotine products, likely due to targeted marketing and low risk awareness.
Regulatory Challenges:
Fragmented regulations (e.g., tax disparities, flavor bans) hinder cross-border enforcement.
Illegal cross-border sales (e.g., disposable e-cigarettes, nicotine pouches in Denmark, Norway, Lithuania) undermine domestic policies.
Future Directions: Strengthen regional cooperation, harmonize standards, and tailor prevention programs (e.g., gender-specific interventions, cessation services).
Conclusion
Nordic and Baltic countries exhibit diverse trends in youth nicotine use and regulation. Addressing this public health threat requires collaborative, evidence-based strategies to protect adolescents from nicotine harm.

Source: https://nordicwelfare.org/pub/Use_of_nicotine_products_among_youth_in_the_Nordic_and_Baltic_countries_-_An_overview/index.html

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