Vape detectors are being installed in US schools to catch students with e-cigarettes

Vaping is on the rise around the world. Now schools in the States are fighting back.

High schools across the US are reportedly installing vape detectors in a bid to stamp out the use of e-cigarettes. The devices, which look like smoke or carbon monoxide detectors, are being put in bathrooms, cupboards and anywhere else where students might try to vape in schools, according to CNN. Traditional smoke detectors don't pick up the vapour. Some of the detectors can even sense THC oil, a compound found in marajuana. When set off, a vape detector will send a text message to school officials with the location where it was triggered. The new tactic reflects changing trends as more and more young people choose vaping over smoking cigarettes. According to figures from 2018, 20 per cent of high school students in the US vape. There have been concerns over the safety of e-cigarettes recently after a number of vaping-related deaths. US health officials announced last week that 450 people across 33 states have come down with a deadly lung illness linked to e-cigarette use. Here in Ireland, it's estimated that four per cent of the population regularly vape.

According to the HSE: "Current government policy does not identify a role for e-cigarettes in tobacco control in Ireland. The Department of Health continues to monitor evidence in this areas as part of its ongoing monitoring and review of Tobacco Free Ireland and will determine any updates to policy as appropriate."