Many Middle, High Schoolers Report E-Cigarette Cannabis Use

TUESDAY, Sept. 18, 2018 (HealthDay News) — Nearly one in 11 U.S. middle and high school students used cannabis in electronic cigarettes (e-cigarettes) in 2016, according to a research letter published online Sept. 17 in JAMA Pediatrics.

Katrina F. Trivers, Ph.D., M.S.P.H., from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta, and colleagues used data from the 2016 National Youth Tobacco Survey to assess cannabis use in e-cigarettes among 20,675 students in grades 6 to 12.

The researchers found that 8.9 percent of all students reported use of cannabis in e-cigarettes, while 30.6 percent of those who ever used e-cigarettes reported cannabis use in e-cigarettes. Use was higher among male students (10.6 percent for all respondents and 33.3 percent for e-cigarette users), high school students (12.4 percent for all respondents and 33.3 percent for e-cigarette users), current users of e-cigarettes (39.5 percent for all respondents and 40.3 percent for e-cigarette users) or other tobacco products (38.5 percent for all respondents and 46.9 percent for e-cigarette users), users of e-cigarettes on 20 to 30 days in the past 30 days compared with one to five or six to 19 days (63.7 percent), and those who lived with a user of tobacco products (13 percent for all respondents and 31.7 percent for e-cigarette users). Prevalence of cannabis use was higher among Hispanics than other races/ethnicities (10.8 percent for all respondents).

“Strategies to reduce cannabis use in e-cigarettes are critical for protecting young people from these potential health risks,” the authors write.

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