Study Finds Teens Mainly Get Vaping Products from Friends
A U.S. study on how teens get vaping products found that most obtain them from peers. Researchers say the findings can help shape interventions to prevent underage vaping.
According to VapingPost, a study in the United States aimed at determining how teenagers obtain e-cigarettes shows that they primarily get them from their peers.
The study, titled "Sources of E-Cigarettes for Adolescents," aims to investigate how minors acquire e-cigarettes to inform interventions to prevent youth vaping.
The research found that teenagers mainly obtain e-cigarette products through friends.
Researchers used data from the 2017 North Carolina Youth Tobacco Survey, which surveyed 640 middle and high school students under 18 who reported vaping in the past 30 days. The study showed that over half (51.5%) of the surveyed participants reported obtaining e-cigarettes from friends.
At the same time, 12th-grade students were more likely to purchase products from e-cigarette shops or retail stores. On the other hand, teenagers living with smokers were more likely to obtain e-cigarette devices from family members than those without smokers in their households.
Teenagers use e-cigarettes mainly out of curiosity.
The research found that teenagers mainly obtain e-cigarette products through friends.
Regarding youth smoking rates, recent data released by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) indicates that ultimately, curiosity is the main driver for minors trying e-cigarettes, rather than the commonly believed flavored e-liquids.
The CDC's data released last week suggests that all flavor bans implemented across the country may not effectively reduce youth vaping rates.
“Among students who reported having ever tried e-cigarettes, the three most common reasons for use were: “I was curious about them” (55.3%), “friends or family used them” (30.8%), and “they were available” (22.4%). Among students who had never used e-cigarettes, 39.1% were curious about using e-cigarettes, while 37.0% were curious about smoking.
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