February 27, 2018

expert reaction to new study on ecigs and smoking among adolescents

A new study, published in Journal of Adolescent Medicine, examines the relationship between smoking and vaping among young people.

Prof John Britton, Director of the UK Centre for Tobacco & Alcohol Studies at the University of Nottingham, said:

“This study shows that young people who experiment with tobacco cigarettes also try e-cigarettes, and vice versa, consistent with a tendency for young people to try things, and to try things that are related to each other.  Young people who don’t smoke but try an electronic cigarette are indeed more likely to become smokers, but those people are probably also more likely to become smokers even if without e-cigarettes. The numbers who move from e-cigarettes to smoking are small. This study therefore provides further reassurance that e-cigarettes are not a major gateway to smoking.”

* ‘The Association Between Smoking and Electronic Cigarette Use in a Cohort of Young People’ by Katherine East et al. published in the Journal of Adolescent Medicine on Tuesday 27 February 2018.

Declared interests

None received.