Teens who use e-cigarettes end up smoking real ones
A small study funded by the National Cancer Institute showed that teens and young adults who use e-cigarettes are likely to move on to regular cigarettes.
The study followed 694 participants, all between 16 to 26 years old. All of them said they will not start smoking regular cigarettes. Sixteen of the 694 participants, or 2.3%, are using e-cigarettes.
After a year, six out of the sixteen e-cigarette smokers (or 35%) moved on to regular cigarettes. Five e-cigarette smokers (or 31.3%) were now unsure if they won’t smoke.
Among those who weren’t using e-cigarettes, 65 (or 9.6%) are now smokers, and 63 (or 9.3%) are now unsure of their stand against smoking.
The number of e-cigarette users is fairly small, making it a limitation to the study. It also was not specified if the e-cigarette users who transitioned now smoke regularly or just experimenting.
The study is done by researchers at the University of Pittsburgh and Dartmouth-Hitchcock Norris Cotton Cancer Center was published online and will be in print on the journal JAMA Pediatrics
The researchers studies different factors like sensation-seeking that could’ve led to smoking. Even after adjusting for these factors, they still see a link between e-cigarettes and smoking.
“It will be important to continue surveillance among youth of both e-cigarette use and overlap with use of other tobacco products,” they wrote.
Category: Features, Health alert
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