PRESENTATION CANCELLED 6/3 - Use of Electronic Cigarettes Vs. Traditional Cigarettes Among Youth in Oklahoma

BACKGROUND:   Use of cigarettes and other tobacco products among youth is generally in decline both in the nation and in Oklahoma. Certain new tobacco products such as electronic cigarettes (e-cigarettes) are rapidly increasing in popularity, however, and there is great concern that some of these products could introduce a new generation of youth to smoking. Therefore, it is critical to begin studying these new products, and monitoring their use in systematic tobacco surveys. Although e-cigarette use appears to be increasing, national data suggests that use of traditional cigarettes is still more common than use of e-cigarettes.¹  We therefore hypothesized that use of e-cigarettes would be less common than use of traditional cigarettes among Oklahoma teens, as well.

METHODS:   The Oklahoma Youth Tobacco Survey (OYTS) is a statewide school-based survey of public school students in grades 6-12.  It was conducted in the spring of 1999, 2002, and every two years since 2005 by the Oklahoma State Department of Health, in cooperation with the CDC and other partners.  This comprehensive survey of tobacco use, knowledge and attitudes among Oklahoma youth provides important data for tracking tobacco use and to guide youth tobacco use prevention programs. The OYTS began tracking use of e-cigarettes for the first time in 2013.

RESULTS:   Ever use of e-cigarettes was reported by 17.9% of Oklahoma high school students. This compares to 39.3% who reported ever use of traditional cigarettes. This difference is statistically significant (McNemar’s c² = 279.91, p < .0001). Current use of e-cigarettes is noticeably lower at 7.8% of high school students.  Current use of traditional cigarettes was reported by 15.1% of high school students.  Again, this difference is statistically significant (McNemar’s  c² =  61.56, p < .0001). Among middle school students, 6.3% of students reported ever use of e-cigarettes, vs. 21.1% who reported ever use of traditional cigarettes. This difference is statistically significant (McNemar’s  c² = 378.67, p < .0001). Current use of e-cigarettes showed a similar pattern: 2.5% of middle school students reported use as compared to 4.8% who reported use of traditional cigarettes (McNemar’s  c² = 32.56, p < .0001).

CONCLUSIONS:   The hypothesis that use of e-cigarettes would be less common than use of traditional cigarettes among Oklahoma teens was supported. This was true for both high school and middle school students, and for both ever use and current use of these products.