The world our boys are growing up in is constantly changing and evolving at an exponential rate. Technology means that young people today are bombarded with more information/opinions/ideas/products in a day than we used to absorb in a year. Adaptions to language and behaviour are constantly occurring and this means that the way we communicated and connected with others when we were young is now no longer relevant to how people communicate and connect today.

When we were young, cigarettes were everywhere. They were at restaurants, in staffrooms, in sports clubs, in our homes, in movies and on our TVs. There had always been a long-held understanding that they were bad for us, but until the early 2000s when e-cigarettes first hit the market, there was never an alternative in sight. The evolution of E-cigarettes has developed over the past 5-7 into the vaping epidemic. At first marketed as the healthy alternative to smoking, people rapidly picked up this habit without understanding the harm that it could do, or the highly addictive nature of the practice.

As we now start to chase our tails as a society to get on top of the prevalence of vaping, especially among young New Zealanders who had never ever contemplated, let alone had the opportunity to start smoking, the next threat looms on the horizon. Zyns are oral nicotine pouches which are discretely placed between the gums and upper lip and release nicotine into the user’s system over an extended period. They are free from tobacco but remain high in nicotine meaning that they are highly addictive. Doctors overseas are also already reporting increased gum damage and disease associated with users of Zyns.

From my perspective, this product is not solving an issue, but rather is providing the opportunity for nicotine addicts and curious teenagers alike to fuel or develop their addiction right under our noses. The product is freely available via a range of social media channels, and as in the early days of vaping, is being pushed as a healthier alternative. It is designed to be incredibly discrete, and suppliers are deliberately avoiding mainstream marketing channels to try and build their user market before widespread knowledge of the product is gained.

I implore you as the parent of a Lindisfarne student to watch out for evidence of potential Zyn usage and talk openly with your sons about the harm that can result from any product that is based around addiction. Let us work together to get in front of the Zyn threat before it can take hold.

Mr David Cournane, Assistant Rector (Pastoral)

Article added: Tuesday 16 April 2024