Department of Population and Public Health Sciences, Keck School of Medicine, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA, USA.
Department of Community Health and Health Behavior, School of Public Health and Health Professions, State University of New York at Buffalo, Buffalo, NY, USA.
Subst Use Addctn J. 2024 Apr;45(2):181-190. doi: 10.1177/29767342231218533. Epub 2024 Jan 28.
Young adults are using e-cigarettes at high rates. While the literature on the health risks associated with e-cigarettes is extensive and growing, little is known about young adults' thoughts and perceptions of the safety and harms of e-cigarettes.
We conducted one-on-one interviews with young adults aged 18 to 25 years in Los Angeles, California between June 2018 and June 2019. We interviewed and audio-recorded young adults (N = 62) who consented to the study and self-reported to have used e-cigarettes on a weekly basis or more for at least 5 months prior to study enrollment. Interviews examined participants' thoughts, feelings, and experiences related to e-cigarette use. We audio-recorded, transcribed, and coded the interviews using grounded theory analysis methods.
Young adults often believed that e-cigarettes were safer than cigarettes and were safe to use, especially following positive vaping experiences. Young adults were skeptical of the available science on e-cigarette use and felt there was not conclusive data on the harms of e-cigarettes. In their selection of e-cigarettes over cigarettes, young adults felt they were making a conscious and healthier choice. Because young adults viewed e-cigarettes to be better for them based on their personal experiences with vaping, they felt e-cigarettes were a superior alternative to combustible tobacco.
Young adults in our study believed that the long-term health effects of e-cigarette use are not clearly understood and were generally skeptical of the research on e-cigarette harms. Policy, education, and anti-smoking campaigns need to clarify the negative health-related consequences of e-cigarette use for young people.
年轻人正在大量使用电子烟。虽然与电子烟相关的健康风险的文献已经很丰富且在不断增加，但人们对年轻人对电子烟安全性和危害的看法知之甚少。
我们在 2018 年 6 月至 2019 年 6 月期间在加利福尼亚州洛杉矶对 18 至 25 岁的年轻人进行了一对一访谈。我们采访并录音了那些同意参加研究且自我报告在研究入组前至少 5 个月每周至少使用电子烟或更多次的年轻人（N=62）。访谈检查了参与者与电子烟使用相关的想法、感受和经验。我们使用扎根理论分析方法对访谈进行了录音、转录和编码。
年轻人通常认为电子烟比香烟更安全，使用起来是安全的，尤其是在有过积极的 vaping 体验后。年轻人对电子烟使用的现有科学持怀疑态度，并且认为电子烟危害方面没有确凿的数据。在选择电子烟而不是香烟时，年轻人认为他们做出了有意识和更健康的选择。由于年轻人根据自己的 vaping 经验认为电子烟对他们更好，因此他们认为电子烟是可燃烟草的更好替代品。
我们研究中的年轻人认为电子烟使用的长期健康影响尚不清楚，并且普遍对电子烟危害的研究持怀疑态度。政策、教育和反吸烟运动需要澄清电子烟使用对年轻人的负面健康相关后果。
