Teens who start vaping are more likely to start smoking.
Researchers at the University of Southern California surveyed more than
3,000 10th-graders in Los Angeles public schools, and found 20% of
those who regularly used e-cigarettes became regular cigarette smokers
after six months.
The study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association
on Tuesday noted that 37% of U.S. high school sophomores report vaping,
and suggested that the e-cigs are a gateway drug to smoking tobacco
whether or not the electronic inhalers contained nicotine. The teens who
frequently vaped were 10 times more likely to become regular cigarette
smokers six months later than those who had never vaped.
The researchers will continue to follow the same group of teens to see
how their substance use and health behaviors evolve over time.
“The role of nicotine and generalizability of these results to other
locations and ages, longer follow-up periods, and non-self-report
assessments are unknown and merit further inquiry,” the authors wrote.
“The transition from vaping to smoking may warrant particular attention
in tobacco control policy.”
No comments:
Post a Comment