E-cigarette susceptibility as a predictor of youth initiation of e-cigarettes

Abstract

More than a quarter of the sample who reported both a willingness to try e-cigarettes if offered by a best friend and anticipation of experimenting with e-cigarettes in the future went on to try e-cigarettes within the academic year, suggesting that targeting this group will be critical for preventing youth e-cigarette initiation. There were notable demographic differences between susceptible and non-susceptible youth, suggesting targeting e-cigarette prevention efforts to male students who have used other substances may be especially important for preventing future e-cigarette use. Research is needed to determine the most effective prevention strategies to reach susceptible youth.

Favourable Perceptions of Electronic Cigarettes Relative to Cigarettes and the Associations with Susceptibility to Electronic Cigarette Use in Hong Kong Chinese Adolescents

“…Validity of the assessment was supported by the robust association between susceptibility to EC use and ever EC use in the present sample ( Table S1 in the Supplementary Materials ). A similar assessment compositely measuring susceptibility to EC use in the future and when a good friend offered an EC has been shown to be an independent prospective predictor of EC use in adolescent never users [ 42 ], also lending support to our assessment. Second, causality cannot be inferred based on our cross-sectional observational data.…”

“…For non-smokers in particular, the great majority of adolescents in society, the potential benefits of switching from cigarettes to ECs do not apply, and ECs may be a gateway to smoking [ 13 , 25 , 41 , 50 ]. Preventive measures are needed, and it is worthwhile to explore risk factors of EC use susceptibility in adolescents, which prospectively predicts EC use initiation [ 42 ], to inform prevention work.…”

“…We therefore examined to what degree adolescents had favourable perceptions of ECs compared with cigarettes, using data from a territory-wide survey in secondary school students in Hong Kong. Associations between the perceptions and EC use susceptibility in never EC users, a strong predictor of future EC use [ 42 ], were also examined. As EC use may promote smoking in non-smokers, we did subgroup analyses on the associations in never smokers and ex-smokers.…”

A videogame intervention for tobacco product use prevention in adolescents

“…Adolescents cite flavors as the top reason for using e-cigarettes (Bold, Kong, Cavallo, Camenga, Krishnan-Sarin, 2016), and perceive e-cigarettes and other vaping products to be safer than conventional cigarettes (Harrell et al, 2017; Villanti, et al, 2017; Kowitt et al 2017; Feirman, Lock, Cohen, Holtgrave, & Li, 2016; Pokhrel, Fagan, Kehl, & Herzog, 2015). However, adolescent e-cigarette use has been linked to subsequent cigarette use (Bold, Kong, Cavallo, Camenga, Krishnan-Sarin, 2017; Soneji et al, 2017), and emerging data suggest that e-cigarettes and other vaping products are themselves harmful (El-Zaatari, Chami, & Zaatari, 2015; Tierney, Karpinski, Brown, Luo, & Pankow, 2016; McConnell, et al, 2017; Schweitzer, Wills, Tam, Pagano, & Choi, 2017). Thus, interventions for preventing adolescent tobacco product use should address knowledge, beliefs, and risk perceptions, including information about product safety.…”

The effect of sucralose on flavor sweetness in electronic cigarettes varies between delivery devices

“…Surveys have shown that sweet and fruity flavors are among the most popular, particularly with youth and young adults [ 4 – 8 ], and a recent laboratory study confirmed there is a significant association between sweetness and the degree of liking of e-cigarette flavors [ 9 ]. Sweet flavors may therefore heighten the risk of nicotine exposure in this young, at-risk cohort [ 10 ]. There is also concern that some sweet flavorants commonly used in foods and beverages have irritant properties when inhaled [ 11 – 13 ].…”