E-cigarette Use, Tobacco Product Polyuse, and Motivations for Use among Baltimore Young Adults

We examined reasons for e-cigarette use, tobacco product polyuse, and tobacco cessation interest among tobacco-using young adults from an urban setting.

Participants (N = 97) completed a risk factor survey. Descriptive statistics and prevalence estimates of polytobacco use patterns, motivations for tobacco use, tobacco cessation interest, and beliefs and risk perceptions about tobacco use were explored.

All participants had a history of polyuse, and 85% were current polyusers. Stress was the primary reason reported for tobacco use. Compared to single-product users, current polyusers also were more likely to mention environment and cheap cost as reasons for use. Most participants perceived cigarettes to be as addictive as cocaine or heroin, although this perception was less common among e-cigarette users than non-users. Among study participants, 59% reported wanting to stop using tobacco completely. Among current polyusers, those that used e-cigarettes were more likely to report cessation attempts during the past year and express interest in enrolling in a quit smoking text messaging program.

In our sample there was a high prevalence of polytobacco product use and complex tobacco use patterns among young adults, both in and out of college, from an urban community.