Adekeye OT, et al. Bullying, Sexual Assault, and E-Cigarette Use Among High-School Students in the U.S. American Journal of Preventive Medicine, Volume 69, Issue 6, 108106. December 2025.

https://www.ajpmonline.org/article/S0749-3797(25)00574-4/abstract

“Data from the 2023 Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System were analyzed using statistical methods in 2025.

Among respondents, 31.1% reported ever using E-cigarettes, and 16.7% reported past 30-day use. School-based bullying was associated with higher odds of ever use (AOR=1.28, 95% CI=1.06, 1.54), whereas electronic bullying showed stronger associations (AOR=2.22, 95% CI=1.85, 2.66). Forced sexual intercourse was linked to both ever use (AOR=2.04, 95% CI=1.56, 2.66) and past 30-day use (AOR=3.27, 95% CI=2.69, 3.97). A significant sex interaction (p=0.011) indicated higher predicted probabilities of ever use for females (62.2%) than for males (44.3%) who had experienced forced sexual intercourse. Race/ethnicity and grade level were also significant predictors, with Asian students reporting lower odds of use than White students (AOR=0.38, 95% CI=0.25, 0.58).

Bullying and forced sexual intercourse are significantly associated with adolescent E-cigarette use, with electronic bullying and forced sexual intercourse showing particularly strong effects. Findings underscore the need for trauma-informed, school-based prevention strategies tailored to demographic risk factors.”

TRC Research Commentary

Stanton Glantz, UCSF, posted a summary of his often-cited paper on the risks of electronic cigarettes. Please go to the link with questions and answers included.

E-cigarettes have similar risks to combustible cigarettes for some diseases and nearly as high for others.  Dual use is riskier than smoking alone.

https://profglantz.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/glantz-ecig-meta-nejm-e-one-pager-9apr2024.pdf

“It is commonly assumed that e-cigarettes are substantially less risky than cigarettes. This assumption is based on the fact that e-cigarettes do not burn tobacco, so they avoid the toxic combustion products that cigarettes produce. In recent years, however, evidence on the health risks of e-cigarettes has been rapidly accumulating on the associations between e-cigarette use and actual disease in the population.  The 2024 NEJM Evidence paper “Population-Based Disease Odds for E-Cigarettes and Dual Use versus Cigarettes” uses these epidemiological studies to conclude that for cardiovascular disease, stroke, and metabolic dysfunction, e-cigarette risks are similar to cigarettes, and for respiratory and oral disease, while lower risk than cigarettes, the risks are still substantial.

Dual use (using e-cigarettes and cigarettes at the same time) is riskier than smoking alone for all outcomes. In addition to comparing the risks of e-cigarettes with cigarettes – the comparison of most interest when thinking about adult “switching” – the paper also estimated the risks associated with e-cigarette use and dual use compared to non-use.  All these risks are also elevated. The finding of comparable or slightly lower risks for e-cigarettes undermines the argument that e-cigarettes are an effective tool for harm reduction for smokers, because the harms of e-cigarette use are not substantially below cigarettes.”

Comment: Some clinical trials suggest e-cigarettes are useful for ‘harm reduction’, but these controlled medical studies do not reflect the actual use patterns of the general population or the substantial damage to youth from early use of e-cigarettes.

Stephen Hamann