Barbados is facing a rapidly growing public health challenge as underage vaping becomes increasingly normalized among secondary school students, a leading child and adolescent mental health specialist has warned. Nicolette Williams, a psychotherapist at substance abuse support organization Verdun House, outlined the scale of the crisis Tuesday on the sidelines of a grant event hosted by Ross University for local community charities. Drawing on four years of original research conducted in Barbadian secondary schools, Williams confirmed that teen vaping has moved from a hidden trend to a widespread, socially accepted behavior across the island, mirroring a global pattern of youth uptake. What makes vaping particularly attractive to young people, Williams explained, is the deliberate design and marketing of these products. Sweet and fruity flavor profiles, eye-catching colorful packaging, and targeted social media campaigns have been crafted to appeal directly to adolescent consumers, turning what is marketed as a ‘healthy alternative to smoking’ into a trendy must-have activity for teens. Most troubling of all, Williams said, is how easily underage students can access these products. Multiple participants in the research admitted that local retailers freely sell vapes to teens despite age restrictions, removing a key barrier to underage use. Her team’s work has brought them into contact with more than 2,000 students across six Barbadian secondary schools, including a high-risk cohort of young people already grappling with emotional disorders and substance misuse. Among this vulnerable group, nearly all reported regular vaping use. Contrary to the common misconception among teens that vaping is harmless or ‘cool’, Williams emphasized that the practice causes severe damage to multiple aspects of adolescent health and development. As a mood-altering substance, vaping directly disrupts emotional regulation, leaving many users prone to persistent anger, chronic demotivation, and unstable mental health. Physically, the habit has been linked to life-altering medical complications affecting critical organs, including the lungs, kidneys and heart. Beyond individual health impacts, the addiction also drives harmful behavioral changes: some teens develop patterns of dishonesty and even turn to theft to fund their vaping habit. To reverse this growing crisis, Williams is calling for a coordinated, multi-level national response that expands far beyond individual family interventions. She stressed that comprehensive education is the foundation of any effective solution, noting that awareness building must reach students, parents, guardians and school staff alike. To create meaningful, long-term change, Williams argues, public health action must be scaled up from local communities to the regional level, with sustained programming embedded in every secondary school across the country to curb youth vaping before it creates a generational public health burden.