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Wider Ban on Flavors, Cooling Agents Could Drive Down Youth Vaping Rates
A majority of adolescents who participated in a recent survey said they would likely stop vaping if e-liquid flavors were limited to tobacco-flavor only. The survey results suggest that major progress in reducing youth vaping could be achieved with a complete restriction on sweet flavorings and cooling agents in both cartridge and disposable e-cigarette devices.
The study was conducted by researchers at the Center for Tobacco Research at The Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center (OSUCCC), and findings were published in the Journal of Studies on Addiction and Drugs.
A total of 1414 adolescents between the ages of 14 and 17 were surveyed on their e-cigarette use and behaviors. The study included demographic information about types of devices used, usage habits, preferred flavors, and intent to discontinue vaping device use in response to a proposed comprehensive flavor ban.
Nearly 39% of survey participants said they would stop using e-cigarettes if tobacco and menthol-flavored e-liquids were their only available options, and nearly 71% said they would quit if presented with tobacco-flavor as their only option.
“Our data add to an expanding body of evidence showing that youth have a preference for sweet flavorings that make vaping easier for novice users of e-cigarette products, priming them for a potential lifetime of dependency to nicotine,” Alayna Tackett, PhD, senior author of the study and a researcher with the Center for Tobacco Research at the OSUCCC – James, said in a news release.
Currently, the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has a flavor ban that applies only to cartridge e-cigarettes. The ban, which was enacted in February 2020, does not include disposable devices or menthol flavoring for all devices. In the time since the FDA’s ban went into effect, e-cigarette cartridge product sales have decreased, but disposable and menthol-flavored pod/cartridge device sales have gone up.
Adolescents and young adults using sweet flavors with cooling additives reported higher odds of discontinuing use under a proposed tobacco-only product regulation compared to those who prefer menthol flavor only.
“In this sample of adolescents and young adults, it appears that non-tobacco flavors may be important for their interest in and continued use of e-cigarettes,” Dr Tackett said.
Meanwhile, a separate study published in the journal Respiratory Care found that about one-third of college students use electronic nicotine delivery devices, and half of those students increased their vaping during COVID-19 lockdowns.
The study was based on findings from a survey completed by 656 undergraduate and graduate students at the University of Tampa in Florida and the IST University of Applied Sciences in Germany in February 2021. Survey participants completed a 31-item, self-reported questionnaire that assessed demographics, vaping behaviors, motivations and products used, and associated factors, such as living condition and depression.
Researchers found that addiction and stress relief emerged as predictors of an increase in vaping, whereas social motives, living situations, and depression were not statistically significant.
“Although young adults surveyed reported more negative than positive associations with vaping, most increased their smoking behavior during the COVID-19 lockdown,” the researchers wrote. “Students attributed this to addiction and stress relief. Addiction counseling and mental health counseling need to be more accessible for the target group.”
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