Failed innovation? E-cigarettes proving to promote, not deter tobacco use

In a recent study, a group of scientists have found nonsmoking adolescents who use e-cigarettes, smokeless tobacco or tobacco water pipes are more likely to start smoking conventional cigarettes within a year.

A new research by UC San Francisco, analysed data from a nationally-representative sample of more than 10,000 adolescents, ages 12 to 17, which makes it the largest study to date to estimate the impact between alternative tobacco use and the subsequent start of conventional cigarette smoking in youth.

The team discovered that any form of tobacco, including e-cigarettes, was associated with future smoking, especially when adolescents used more than one product.

It means that novel tobacco products have the potential to undermine public health gains in combatting smoking.

Study's senior author Benjamin W. Chaffee, an assistant professor at the UCSF School of Dentistry, said, "We found that teens who experimented with tobacco in any form were at greater risk of future smoking. In the last few years, research has focused on the potential of e-cigarettes to engage never-smoking adolescents in tobacco use."

He added, "Our findings confirm that the use of the full range of tobacco products, including e-cigarettes, cigars, tobacco water pipes, and smokeless tobacco, is associated with greater odds of future cigarette smoking."

The research also showed that almost 90 percent of adult smokers smoked their first cigarette by the time they were 18.

In recent years, non-cigarette tobacco products have become increasingly popular among youth, especially e-cigarettes, the most common form of tobacco used by youth.

In 2016, nearly four million middle and high school students used at least one tobacco product, and 1.8 million of the students reported using two or more products, studies have shown.

The study was published in jounrnal JAMA Pediatrics.