Washington (AFP)
The number of American students using e-cigarettes has dropped significantly in 2020 compared to the previous year, according to an official report released Wednesday.
About 3.6 million young Americans vaped in 2020, up from 5.4 million in 2019, according to the annual government National Youth Tobacco Survey.
There are many reasons for this drop, but a sudden attack of severe lung disease linked to vaping, which killed 60 people, probably played a role.
The cause has since been identified: an ingredient added to cut cannabis e-liquids, vitamin E acetate.
“While the decline in e-cigarette use among the country's youth is a notable public health achievement, our work is far from over,” said the director of the US Centers for Prevention and Control. diseases (CDC), Robert Redfield.
“The use of e-cigarettes remains an epidemic, and the CDC is determined to support efforts to protect youth from this preventable health risk,” he continued.
About 20,000 young people aged 11 to 18 responded to the questionnaire between mid-January and mid-March this year, which asked them in particular if they had vaped in the last 30 days.
These declarations came before most schools closed because of the Covid-19 pandemic, which therefore did not have a priori impact on the results.
In 2020, about one in five high school students vaped in the United States (up from over a quarter in 2019), and one in twenty students aged 11 to 14 was an e-cigarette user (up from one in ten). 'last year).
E-cigarettes entered the U.S. market in 2007, and have been the most common tobacco product used by young Americans since 2014.
In an attempt to combat this, the minimum age for purchasing these products in the country has been raised from 18 to 21.
Donald Trump's government has also banned most flavors of electronic cigarettes using refills ("pods"), popular with young people, like those of the market leader, Juul.
No more mango or candy flavors, only tobacco and menthol flavors have been exempted.
All flavors, however, remain authorized for vapers that use refillable tanks, more often used by adults.
According to the survey by health authorities, 83% of high school students who use e-cigarettes reported using flavorings, as did 74% of vapers aged 11 to 14.
Cigarettes using cartridges remain what they use the most.
But the study reveals a new element of concern: between 2019 and 2020, the use of disposable electronic cigarettes has exploded from 2% to 27% among high school students.
The increase is also notable among young people aged 11 to 14 (from 3% to 15%).
© 2020 AFP