Evidence map›Paper›PMID 42218916›Full record

ArticleAddiction (Abingdon, England)2026

#NoIDVape: A content analysis of illicit vape messaging in young people's information sources.

Eleanor Bray, Sarah Gentry, Anna Varley, Caitlin Notley, Samuel Webb, Emma Ward

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Addiction (Abingdon, England), 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 1 paper.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
1citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

1 citing paper in PubMed.

  1. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

6 authors.

Eleanor BrayNorwich Medical School, University of East Anglia, Norwich, UK.ORCID https://orcid.org/0009-0008-7209-4508
Sarah GentryNorwich Medical School, University of East Anglia, Norwich, UK.
Anna VarleyNorwich Medical School, University of East Anglia, Norwich, UK.
Caitlin NotleyNorwich Medical School, University of East Anglia, Norwich, UK.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0876-3304
Samuel WebbIndependent public representative with lived experience in vaping, UK.
Emma WardNorwich Medical School, University of East Anglia, Norwich, UK.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7579-3215

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

BACKGROUND AND

aimsIn recent years, the increased prevalence of youth vaping in the United Kingdom (UK) may have coincided with a proliferation in the use of 'illicit' (unregulated) vapes. Media or educational content about illicit vaping aimed at young people is scarce and poorly understood. This study aimed to systematically assess the content of both TikTok videos and educational resources relating to illicit vaping.

methodsA systematically conducted analysis of educational and social media resources. Manual searches were conducted in the UK to collect URLs and metadata for publicly available TikTok videos using eight illicit vaping-related hashtags. Video content was coded across inductively derived thematic domains. Educational resources were collected via relevant search terms on Google; illicit vape content was appraised across five domains and the quality of each resource was assessed.

resultsA total of 58 TikTok videos were categorised across nine thematic domains. The most prevalent themes were 'Apathy Towards Law' (57%), 'Entertain/Humour' (50%) and 'Sub-culture and Shared Experience' (50%), generating a combined total of 21 million likes. Educational resources were rated as 'good' quality overall (56%) but underperformed in domains related to 'Illicit Vapes Health Risk Depiction' and 'Relevance and Appeal to Youth'. In contrast to the 'homemade', 'entertaining' and sometimes 'glamourising' presentation of the TikTok videos, educational resources adopted a serious tone and were often disengaging.

conclusionsIllicit vaping content differs between TikTok videos and educational resources, exhibiting differences in sentiment, information and youth appeal. TikTok videos typically receive high engagement and frequently depict themes of apathy towards the law, entertainment and shared experience. Educational resources are generally of good quality but contain limited information on illicit vape health risks and lack youth relevance.

Indexed as

Social MediaVapingAdolescentDigital MediaHumansMedia ExposureUnited Kingdomdigital health communicationeducational resourcesIllicit vapingsocial media marketingTikTokunderage accessyouth vaping

Identifiers

PMID42218916
PMCPMC13486925

What OpenQuestion holds

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Registered trials

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.