Product Watch warns Thai youth about cannabis vapes
Product Watch issued a warning yesterday, January 29, that electric cannabis vapes are spreading rapidly among young people, highlighting their low cost, easy availability, and toy‑like design as growing risks to children and teens.
Associate Professor Dr Sirach Lapyai from the Faculty of Public Health at Mahidol University, who also manages the Product Watch project monitoring dangerous health products, said her team has been tracking electric cannabis since last year.
The monitoring found that the products have become widely available across online platforms and are being sold in multiple brands. According to the findings, the devices come in both disposable versions and models with replaceable liquid pods.
These products often contain a mix of THC and CBD, while some also include Delta‑8 or Delta‑9 compounds. Dr Sirach warned that these substances can pose serious health risks to children and adolescents.
The devices closely resemble e‑cigarettes or small gadgets such as flash drives. They are compact, simple to use, and can be inhaled immediately. Some models can also be recharged using standard mobile phone charging cables, making them even more convenient.
Dr Sirach said most electric cannabis vapes are imported from overseas, adding that the design and marketing of the products are particularly worrying.
She explained that many are deliberately designed to appeal to young people, with cute shapes and snack‑like packaging featuring cartoonish imagery and sweet scents that disguise the smell of cannabis.
She noted that the vapour is often thin, and some products are advertised as leaving no lingering smell. Combined with their small size and gadget‑like appearance, this makes them easy to hide and difficult for parents or teachers to notice.
Citing a report from the Centre for Drug Abuse Studies at Chulalongkorn University’s Faculty of Medicine, which found cannabis use among Thai youth has increased tenfold since decriminalisation, Dr Sirach urged relevant agencies to strengthen online monitoring and regulation targeting new forms of addictive products.
She added that greater awareness among parents and educational institutions is essential to prevent electric cannabis from becoming another gateway to addiction among young people, reported Thai PBS.
Dr Srirach warned that most electric cannabis pods cost just a few hundred baht and are easily ordered online with home delivery. Sellers often promote them with promises of guaranteed intoxication, yet no age verification is required.
This allows children to receive high concentrations of THC rapidly, which may affect brain development, concentration, mental health, and increase the risk of addiction, she said.
In similar news, back in April, vaping in Thailand took a sharp nosedive, with an 80% drop in sales and usage in just two months, as the government lit a fire under its anti-e-cigarette campaign.
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