Teen Tobacco Use Decreasing…but

This project introduced me to storytelling with data. I conducted statistics of teen chewing tobacco usage compared to vaping for a fictional magazine titled Uncle Sam's Southwest Living. The data depicted below shows low usage of cigarette/tobacco use, however vaping continues to rise in the usage among teens ages 12-17.

Teen Cigarette and Tobacco Use Decreasing…but there is a catch!

With how impressionable young people can be, it is quite surprising and hopeful that teen smoking and tobacco use are decreasing. However, there is a catch and researchers at The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) are determined to figure out just how much vaping e-cigarettes have increased. With the various sweet flavors e-cigarettes are available in, it appeals more to teens. Medical experts are concerned due to the high levels of nicotine.

With the focus on the southwestern part of the U.S., the end of 2019 saw teen users decrease below 10%, with California being the lowest with 1.2 % of teen users (See Figure 1). “The American Lung Association works to create a tobacco-free future for all with an objective to reduce adult and youth tobacco use to 8% and 6%, respectively, including 15% for youth e-cigarette and 7% for adult cigarette use by 2025” (American Lung Association, 2023). SAMSA is quickly gathering data of teenage e-cigarettes or vapes to determine the severity of this epidemic.

Sources:

2018-2019 NSDUH State Estimates Of Substance Use And Mental Disorders. (2020, December 2020). Retrieved from SAMHSA: https://www.samhsa.gov/

State Health Facts. (2024). Retrieved from KFF: https://www.kff.org