Socio-demographic Correlates of Electronic Cigarette and Cannabis Co-use Among Naïve and Tobacco Adolescent Users.

Introduction:
This text provides an analysis of the Monitoring the Future (MTF) project data on adolescents' use of e-cigarettes, cannabis, and tobacco. The study aims to identify patterns and correlates of past-month use and co-use of e-cigarettes and cannabis among nationally representative school-attending adolescents and explore co-use patterns by adolescents’ previous tobacco use experience. The research highlights the importance of understanding the unique characteristics of adolescent users and designing targeted interventions.

Key Points:

* The study uses data from the MTF project, a nationally representative panel study of adolescents in the United States.
* The researchers examine the patterns and correlates of past-month use and co-use of e-cigarettes and cannabis among adolescents, stratified by their previous tobacco use experience.
* The study finds that adolescents who have previously used tobacco exhibit higher rates of e-cigarettes use, cannabis use, and co-use than those who have never used tobacco.
* Racial/ethnic differences in e-cigarette and cannabis co-use parallel differences in tobacco cigarette use, with Whites using at the highest rates and Blacks observed to have low rates of co-use.
* Females, older adolescents, and those with higher parental education attainment are more likely to use or co-use cannabis or e-cigarettes.
* The study controls for the survey's complex sampling design and presents association estimates as Relative Risk Ratios (RRR).

Main Message:
The study emphasizes the importance of understanding the unique characteristics of adolescent users of e-cigarettes, cannabis, and tobacco. The findings suggest that adolescents who have previously used tobacco are at higher risk of e-cigarettes use, cannabis use, and co-use. Moreover, the study highlights racial/ethnic and sex differences in co-use patterns, which could inform targeted interventions. The results also indicate that higher parental education attainment is associated with co-use among adolescents, suggesting the need to consider socioeconomic factors in prevention and intervention efforts.

Bares CB, Sharma V, Lopez-Quintero C. Socio-demographic Correlates of Electronic Cigarette and Cannabis Co-use Among Naïve and Tobacco Adolescent Users. Journal of prevention (2022). Published online April 11, 2023. doi:10.1007/s10935-023-00729-z