E-Cigarette Use among Current Smokers Experiencing Homelessness

Abstract

Two-thirds of cigarette smokers experiencing homelessness report using alternative tobacco products, including blunts, cigarillos (little cigars) or roll-your-own tobacco or electronic nicotine delivery systems such as e-cigarettes. We examined attitudes toward e-cigarette use and explored whether e-cigarette use patterns were associated with past-year cigarette quit attempts among current smokers experiencing homelessness. Among the 470 current cigarette smokers recruited from homeless service sites in San Francisco, 22.1% (n = 65) reported the use of e-cigarettes in the past 30 days (‘dual users’). Compared to cigarette-only smokers, dual users considered e-cigarettes to be safer than cigarettes. Patterns of e-cigarette use, including the number of times used per day, duration of use during the day, manner of use and nicotine concentration were not associated with past-year cigarette quit attempts. Studies that examine the motivations for use of e-cigarettes, particularly for their use as smoking cessation aids, could inform interventions for tobacco use among people experiencing homelessness.

Understanding and Tackling the Complex Challenges of Homelessness and Health

“…Broderick [ 9 ] presents the outcomes of a review of physical health screening tests and confirms the challenge in using unsuitable standard tests which add to increased pain and discomfort. Further harm reduction is considered by Durazo’s study [ 10 ], demonstrating the use of e-cigarettes in support of tobacco control.…”