Summary
Introduction:
This text provides an analysis of the social, educational, and psychological health correlates of e-cigarette and combustible cigarette use among adolescents in the US from 2015 to 2021. The study aims to distinguish the outcomes associated with e-cigarette use from combustible cigarettes.
Key Points:
* The study used annual samples of adolescents in grade 12 from Monitoring the Future cross-sectional data from 2015 to 2021.
* Participants were categorized based on vaping and smoking patterns: no use, vape only, smoke only, or both.
* adolescents who vaped-only, smoked-only, or both had worse academic performance than non-smoking, non-vaping peers after demographic adjustment.
* There was no significant difference in self-esteem between the "neither" group and the other groups, though the "vaping-only", "smoking-only", and "both" groups were more likely to report unhappiness.
* Inconsistent differences emerged regarding personal & family beliefs.
* Vaping and smoking were not significantly related to self-esteem, but were linked to unhappiness.
* Vaping does not follow the same patterns as smoking, despite frequent comparisons in the literature.
Main Message:
The study indicates that e-cigarette use among adolescents has distinct associations with various health correlates compared to combustible cigarettes. although vaping-only adolescents generally had better outcomes than their peers who smoked cigarettes, they still reported poorer academic performance compared to those who did not vape or smoke. These findings emphasize the need for tailored prevention and cessation efforts for e-cigarette use among adolescents, as they cannot be simply equated with combustible cigarette use.
Citation
Janjua Na, Kreski NT, Keyes KM. Social, educational, and psychological health correlates of e-cigarette and combustible cigarette use among adolescents in the US from 2015 to 2021. addictive behaviors. 2023;144:107754. doi:10.1016/j.addbeh.2023.107754
