E-Cigarette Use Among Teens Triples in a Year, Public Health Officials Warn of Unintended Consequences

Strategic Insights -

The number of middle and high school students using e-cigarettes has tripled between 2013 and 2014, according to government figures released Thursday, a startling increase that public health officials fear could reverse decades of efforts combating the scourge of smoking. The use of e-cigarettes among teenagers has eclipsed the use of traditional cigarettes and all other tobacco products, a development that Tom Frieden, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, called "alarming" and "shocking." Anti-smoking advocates argue that the rise in the popularity of e-cigarettes stems in part from aggressive, largely unregulated marketing campaigns that Frieden said are "straight out of the playbook" of cigarette ads that targeted young people in earlier generations.

Key Takeaways:

  • The use of e-cigarettes among high school students increased from 4.5% to 13.4% between 2013 and 2014, a staggering tripling of usage.
  • E-cigarette use among middle school students more than tripled during the same period, with 8% reporting use.
  • Only among black students was another tobacco product, cigars, more popular than e-cigarettes among middle and high school students.
  • Usage of hookahs also roughly doubled for middle and high school students, eclipsing the use of regular cigarettes.
  • Conventional cigarette use sank to the lowest levels in years, with 9.2% of high school students and 2.5% of middle school students reporting smoking a cigarette over the past month.
  • The FDA announced plans to regulate e-cigarettes in April, but has not finalized any new regulations, leaving advocates to express concern about the lack of action.
  • Tom Frieden warned that the increase in e-cigarette use among teens "is subjecting another generation of our children to an addictive substance that could undermine all the progress we've made in reducing youth smoking rates."
  • Matt Myers, president of the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids, called the rise in e-cigarette use "the Marlboro Man reborn," with the same marketing tactics being used to target young people.
  • Cynthia Cabrera, executive director of the Smoke-Free Alternatives Trade Association, argued that the concerns expressed by public health officials are premature and not backed up by data, and that e-cigarettes are a potential "good thing" if they lead teens away from traditional cigarettes.

Statistics:

  • 13.4% of high school students used e-cigarettes in 2014, up from 4.5% in 2013.
  • 8% of middle school students used e-cigarettes in 2014.
  • 9.2% of high school students and 2.5% of middle school students reported smoking a cigarette over the past month.
  • Hookah use among middle and high school students roughly doubled between 2013 and 2014.
  • Conventional cigarette use decreased to the lowest levels in years.

Sources:

  • The Washington Post, "E-cigarette use among teens triples in a year, public health officials warn of unintended consequences"
  • Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
  • Food and Drug Administration
  • The Washington Post, "FDA outlines plan to regulate e-cigarettes"
  • Boston Globe, "CDC ads target vaping for first time"
  • Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids
  • Smoke-Free Alternatives Trade Association