E-cigs for Vaping Marijuana used by Teens…

Undoubtedly, it will come as no surprise to coalitions that teenagers have figured out how to use e- cigarette devices for something other than what they were made for – as vaporizers to inhale marijuana. According to the 2015 Monitoring the Future (MTF), conducted by the University of Michigan and funded by the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), at least 6 percent of the youth who said they used e-cigarettes, indicated that they were vaping marijuana.

As you know, Monitoring the Future is an ongoing study of the behaviors, attitudes, and values of American secondary school students, college students, and young adults. The survey has measured drug, alcohol, and cigarette use, as well as related attitudes since 1975. Each year, approximately 50,000 8 th, 10th, and 12 th graders are surveyed (12 th graders since 1975, and 8 th and 10 th graders since 1991). The use of e-cigarettes was measured for the first time in the 2014 MTF survey. In the 2015 study, which was just released on August 26th, 9.5 percent of 8 th graders, 14.0 percent of 10th graders, and 16.2 percent of 12 th graders reported using e-cigarettes in the month prior to the survey.

This year’s survey – for the first time – asked students across all three grades about what they vaporized the last time they used an e-cigarette:

 More than 65 percent said they were vaping just flavoring
 About 20 percent affirmed they were vaping nicotine
 About 6 percent said that they were vaping marijuana or hash oil  And about 6 percent did not know what they had last vaped
The survey further concluded that:

•   Researchers and regulators should not assume all, or even most, vaporizer-users inhale nicotine
•   The public health field should question the use of the term, “Electronic Nicotine Delivery System,” to denote vaporizers and e-cigarettes, as many adolescents might not be using these devices to vape nicotine
•   Vaporizer-users could be candidates for primary prevention programs to combat nicotine and marijuana use among teens
•   There is a need for vaporizer-specific research to assess and regulate their public health threatThe Food and Drug Administration (FDA) recently expanded its tobacco regulatory authority to include e-cigarettes. That’s good news, as it is unclear if some products labeled, “nicotine-free” actually do contain it. New FDA regulations will be requiring accurate labeling on e-cig products.
  When e-cigarettes contain nicotine, the substance is vaporized and inhaled (not smoked). However, its health impact is not yet obvious. Early evidence suggests that e-cigarette use may serve as an introductory product for youth who then go on to use other tobacco products, including conventional cigarettes.