Skip to main content
Log in

Use of electronic nicotine delivery systems and recent initiation of smoking among US youth

International Journal of Public Health

Abstract

Objectives

We assessed whether the prevalence of recent (within a year) initiation of cigarette smoking was associated with reports of ever using electronic delivery systems (ENDS) in the National Youth Tobacco Survey (NYTS) and whether the association varied by age.

Methods

Weighted cross-sectional analysis of use of ENDS, cigarette smoking, age at interview and age at initiation of smoking collected systematically through the 2011–2013 NYTS cycles.

Results

In multivariate analyses those who ever used ENDS were twice as likely as nonusers of ENDS to have tried cigarette smoking in the last year (multivariate PR: 2.3; 95 % CI 1.9, 2.7). This average hid significant variations by age: a 4.1-fold increase (95 %; 2.6, 6.4) among those 11–13 years of age, compared to a smaller increase among those 16–18 years: 1.4-fold (95 % CI 1.1, 1.8).

Conclusions

Use of ENDS by adolescents was associated with initiation of cigarette smoking in the last year. This association was stronger in younger adolescents.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1
Fig. 2

References

  • Arrazola RA, Singh T, Corey CG, Husten CG, Neff LJ, Apelberg BJ, Bunnell RE, Choiniere CJ, King BA, Cox S, McAfee T, Caraballo RS (2015) Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Tobacco use among middle and high school students—United States, 2011–2014. MMWR Morb Mortal Wkly Rep 64:381–385

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Bieler GS, Brown GG, Williams RL, Brogan DJ (2010) Estimating model-adjusted risks, risks differences and risks ratios from complex survey data. Am J Epidemiol 171:618–623

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Bunnell RE, Agaku IT, Arrazola RA, Apelberg BJ, Caraballo RS, Corey CG, Coleman BN, Dube SR, King B (2015) Intentions to smoke cigarettes among never-smoking US middle and high school electronic cigarette users: National Youth Tobacco Survey, 2011–2013. Nicotine Tob Res 17:228–235

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • DiFranza JR, Savageau JA, Fletcher K, Ockene JK, Rigotti NA, McNeill AD, Coleman M, Wood C (2002) Measuring the loss of autonomy over nicotine use in adolescents: the DANDY (development and assessment of nicotine dependence in youths) study. Arch Pediatr Adolesc Med 156:397–403

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Duke JC, Lee YO, Kim AE, Watson KA, Arnold KY, Nonnemaker JM, Porter L (2014) Exposure to electronic cigarette television advertisements among youth and young adults. Pediatrics 134:e29–e36

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Eadie D, Stead M, MacKintosh AM et al (2015) E-cigarette marketing in UK stores: an observational audit and retailers’ views. BMJ Open. 5:e008547. doi:10.1136/bmjopen-2015-008547

    Article  CAS  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Grana RA, Ling PM (2014) “Smoking revolution”: a content analysis of electronic cigarette retail websites. Am J Prev Med. 46:395–403

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Karp I, O’Loughlin J, Hanley J, Tyndale RF, Paradis G (2006) Risk factors for tobacco dependence in adolescent smokers. Tob Control. 15:199–204

    Article  CAS  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Kelsey JL, Whittemore AS, Evans AS, Thompson WD (1996) Methods in observational epidemiology, vol 2nd edn. Oxford University Press, New York, p 36

    Google Scholar 

  • Kim AE, Arnold KY, Makarenko O (2014) E-cigarette retail websites advertising expenditures in the US, 2011–2012. Am J Prev Med 46:409–412

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Kornfield R, Huang J, Vera L, Emery SL (2014) Rapidly increasing promotional expenditures for e-cigarettes. Tob Control. 24:110–111

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Leslie FM, Loughlin SE, Wang R, Perez L, Lotfipour S, Belluzzia JD (2004) Adolescent development of forebrain stimulant responsiveness: insights from animal studies. Ann N Y Acad Sci 1021:148–159

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Leventhal AM, Strong DR, Kirkpatrick MG, Unger JB, Sussman S, Riggs NR, Stone MD, Khoddam R, Samet JM, Audrain-McGovern J (2015) Association of electronic cigarette use with initiation of combustible tobacco product smoking in early adolescence. JAMA 314:700–707

    Article  CAS  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • O’Loughlin J, DiFranza J, Tyndale RF, Meshefedjian G, McMillan-Davey E, Clarke PB, Hanley J, Paradis G (2003) Nicotine-dependence symptoms are associated with smoking frequency in adolescents. Am J Prev Med 25:219–225

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Pokhrel P, Little MA, Fagan P, Muranaka N, Herzog TA (2014) Electronic cigarette use outcome expectancies among college students. Addict Behav 39:1062–1065

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Saddleson ML, Kozlowski LT, Giovino GA, Hawk LW, Murphy JM, MacLean MG, Goniewicz ML, Homish GG, Wrotniak BH, Mahoney MC (2015) Risky behaviors, e-cigarette use and susceptibility of use among college students. Drug Alcohol Depend 149:25–30

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Schroeder MJ, Hoffman AC (2014) Electronic cigarettes and nicotine clinical pharmacology. Tob Control 23 Suppl 2:ii30–ii35

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Slotkin TA (2002) Nicotine and the adolescent brain: insights from an animal model. Neurotoxicol Teratol 24:369–384

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Smith RF, McDonald CG, Bergstrom HC, Ehlinger DG, Brielmaier JM (2015) Adolescent nicotine induces persisting changes in development of neural connectivity. Neurosci Biobehav Rev 55:432–443

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • St Helen G, Havel C, Dempsey DA, Jacob P, Benowitz NL (2015) Nicotine delivery, retention, and pharmacokinetics from various electronic cigarettes. Addiction. doi:10.1111/add.13183

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Sutfin EL, McCoy TP, Morrell HE, Hoeppner BB, Wolfson M (2013) Electronic cigarette use by college students. Drug Alcohol Depend 131:214–221

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Sutfin EL, Reboussin BA, Debinski B, Wagoner KG, Spangler J, Wolfson M (2015) The impact of trying electronic cigarettes on cigarette smoking by college students: a prospective analysis. Am J Public Health 105:e83–e89

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Office on Smoking and Health. National Youth Tobacco Survey. Available at http://www.cdc.gov/tobacco/data_statistics/surveys/nyts/. Accessed 16 March 2015

  • US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (2012) Preventing tobacco use among youth and young adults: A Report of the Surgeon General. Atlanta: U.S. Department of health and human services, centers for disease control and prevention, National center for chronic disease prevention and health promotion, office on smoking and health

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

Authors

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Victor M. Cardenas.

Additional information

This article is part of the special issue "Electronic Cigarettes and Public Health".

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Cardenas, V.M., Evans, V.L., Balamurugan, A. et al. Use of electronic nicotine delivery systems and recent initiation of smoking among US youth. Int J Public Health 61, 237–241 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00038-015-0783-7

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Revised:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00038-015-0783-7

Keywords

Navigation