E-cigarette use by young adult nonsmokers: Next-generation nicotine dependence?
Menée aux Etats-Unis à partir des données d'une enquête réalisée en 2016 auprès de 466 842 adultes, cette étude analyse l'utilisation de la cigarette électronique en fonction des Etats, de catégories socio-démographiques et de la santé des participants
E-cigarettes are considered a safer alternative to combustible cigarettes because they deliver nicotine without the toxic chemicals produced by burning tobacco. The public health debate about risks and benefits of e-cigarettes currently focuses on 2 groups: adult smokers and youth nonsmokers (1). On 1 hand, the health benefits if current smokers completely switch from combustible cigarettes to e-cigarettes may be enormous. On the other hand, uptake of e-cigarette vaping by adolescents could lead to initiation of cigarette smoking. However, in the rapidly evolving landscape of e-cigarettes, concern that vaping is a “gateway” to smoking may overlook a more likely outcome: Teenagers who vape may never switch to smoking but will become nicotine-dependent adults who vape.
Annals of Internal Medicine , éditorial, 2017