Today, VicHealth is unveiling a new sculpture installation at Scienceworks depicting the harmful chemicals found in e-cigarettes, in order to inform young Victorians.

The 3D sculpture takes on the form of a ‘vape cloud’ from an e-cigarette and supports new data from VicHealth’s National E-Cigarette Awareness and Attitudes Survey that reveals only one in three people understand the toxic chemicals contained in vapes.

A sculpture in the form of a ‘vape cloud’ is on public display at Scienceworks as part of an ongoing
VicHealth initiative to raise awareness about the dangers of e-cigarettes (vapes).

The sculpture, depicting the toxic chemicals found in e-cigarettes, comes in response to concerning new
VicHealth data highlighting just one in three young people surveyed understand what’s contained in
e-cigarettes.

Study results

The National E-Cigarette Awareness and Attitudes Survey, conducted in February and March, revealed:

● Only one in three young people (37%) and parents (34%) understand what’s in an e-cigarette
● Less than two in five (39%) parents were aware that e-cigarettes can contain as much nicotine as
50 traditional cigarettes
● Nine in 10 parents are concerned about the popularity of vaping among children
● Less than two in five (39%) young people know that using e-cigarettes can lodge fine metal
particles deep in people’s lungs

E-cigarettes can contain over 200 toxic chemicals, many of which are found in weed killer, bleach and
paint stripper. The sculpture visually represents 10 of these commonly recognisable toxic chemicals,
making the dangers of vaping clear to children and their families.

Victorian Minister for Health, The Hon. Mary-Anne Thomas, says, “We’re proud to be launching this
installation to raise awareness and drive crucial change around the troubling use of e-cigarettes gripping
young Victorians.”

VicHealth CEO, Dr Sandro Demaio, says families are rightly concerned about vaping and need to be armed with the facts to have critical conversations with their children.

“While the government continues to make positive headway with their landmark reforms to tackle vaping,
we need to urgently educate Victorians about the dangers of vaping from a young age as they’re targeted with misinformation from the tobacco industry.”

“Our research reveals around two thirds of parents and young people don’t understand that e-cigarettes
contain toxic chemicals – many known to cause cancer. This installation is an engaging way of educating
families about the very real dangers of vaping.

The display aligns with the recent launch of Quit Victoria’s new online Hub ‘Get the Facts on Vaping’ — a
new resource providing information for parents and influential adults to have conversations about the
risks of vaping with young people.

“Most e-cigarettes sold in Australia contain nicotine, one of the most addictive known substances, which
is harmful to adolescent brain development, hinders concentration and can increase their risk of taking up
smoking cigarettes by three,” adds CEO Cancer Council Victoria and former Quit Director, Todd Harper.

“By housing this sculpture at Scienceworks and providing actionable advice through our ‘Get the Facts on
Vaping’ hub, children and their families will gain access to new information and supportive ways of talking
about the harms of vaping, free from judgement. After all, it’s predatory industry tactics that have led to
the steep rise in e-cigarette usage.”

“For more than 30 years, Scienceworks has engaged millions of children with challenges that confront our
society and helped them to navigate their way through,” adds Museums Victoria CEO and Director, Lynley
Crosswell.

“This joint initiative with VicHealth allows us to visually communicate to young people and their families
the science behind vaping and help them to understand the dangers and we hope, prevent future harm.”

The sculpture will be on display from 7 June 2023 until 3 August 2023 at Scienceworks

More information about vaping and the toxic chemicals found in e-cigarettes is at
www.vichealth.vic.gov.au/vaping

Access Quit Victoria’s new online hub ‘Get the Facts on Vaping’ at www.vapingfacts.org.au