Marijuana use among young adult non-daily cigarette smokers over time

The relationship between cannabis and nicotine use: A systematic review and meta-analysis

BACKGROUND AND AIMS

Cannabis and nicotine (tobacco or e-cigarettes) use commonly co-occurs and understanding their relationship can help to inform public health strategies to prevent their harms. We conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis to estimate the association of cannabis use given prior nicotine use and vice versa.

METHODS

PubMed, Embase, PsycINFO, Google Scholar and a hand-search were conducted in 2023 for longitudinal studies of the general population with no restrictions in settings (locations). Random-effects meta-analysis was conducted to estimate odds ratios between cannabis and nicotine use in both directions. The impact of unmeasured confounding was assessed using E-values.

RESULTS

From 5387 identified records, we included 20 studies. Among cannabis-naïve youths, baseline use of any nicotine products was positively associated with initiation of any cannabis use at follow-up [odds ratio (OR) = 5.39, 95% confidence interval (CI) = 3.19, 9.11; adjusted OR (aOR) = 2.59, 95% CI = 2.01, 3.32]. In nicotine-naïve participants (youths + adults), baseline cannabis use was positively associated with the initiation of any nicotine use at follow-up (OR = 4.08, 95% CI = 2.05, 8.11; aOR = 2.94, 95% CI =1.54, 5.61). There were no significant associations between baseline cannabis use and subsequent initiation of any nicotine (aOR = 3.29, 95% CI = 0.85, 12.76) or daily nicotine use (aOR = 2.63, 95% CI = 0.41, 16.95) among youths. The median E-values were 5.5 for nicotine exposure and cannabis use initiation and 4.1 for cannabis exposure and nicotine use initiation, indicating that substantial unmeasured confounding would need to have a strong association with both outcomes to fully explain away the cannabis and nicotine relationship.

CONCLUSION

Although the evidence for associations between cannabis use and tobacco use is mixed, a majority of studies to date have found that cannabis use is associated with prior nicotine use and vice versa.

A Survey of Vaping Use, Perceptions, and Access in Adolescents from South-Central Texas Schools

Despite efforts to dissuade major manufacturers and retailers from marketing and selling vape products to adolescents, the practice of vaping continues to increase in this population. Few studies have assessed adolescent perceptions of vaping, access to vaping, and use of vaping, and most rely, at least in part, on inferential conclusions drawn from data on smoking traditional combustible cigarettes. A novel electronic survey was created to assess the use of vapes, perceptions of vaping, and access to vaping among a convenience sample of adolescents (ages 12-20 years) in eleven schools in South-Central Texas from May to August 2021. The students' perceived threat of negative health outcomes due to vaping was calculated based on questions soliciting perceptions of severity (perceived danger) and susceptibility (perceived likelihood of illness). Trends were identified using descriptive and bivariate statistical tests. A total of 267 respondents were included; 26% had tried vaping. A majority (63%) did not believe vaping and smoking were synonymous. Most (70%) thought it was easy to obtain supplies and (76%) vape before and after (88%) or even during (64%) school. Respondents who vaped had a 34% lower perceived threat when compared to respondents who did not vape. In this sample of adolescents from South-Central Texas, one in four reported that they had tried vaping. Easy access to vapes and misperceptions regarding the safety of vaping might create a false sense of security with respect to vaping as an alternative to smoking, particularly among those who reported vaping, and is likely contributing to the increased use of vapes.

Within-person associations of escalated electronic nicotine delivery systems use with cigarette, alcohol, marijuana and drug use behaviors among US young adults

AIMS

Most extant evidence has addressed between-person differences, short-term or cross-sectional associations of electronic nicotine delivery systems (ENDS) use with other substance use, the majority focusing on current rather than escalated use. The present study aimed to examine within-person changes in escalated ENDS use and their associations with individual and combined substance use over a 6-year period.

DESIGN, SETTING AND PARTICIPANTS

This study used a longitudinal cohort design with US young adults. A generalized linear mixed-model approach was employed to fit a series of weighted logistic regression models. Data were drawn from waves 1-5 of the Population Assessment of Tobacco and Health (PATH) study in the United States. Of the 9110 young adults at baseline, aged 18-24 years, a total of 5042 individuals had matched data across all five waves of assessments.

MEASUREMENTS

Escalated ENDS use was computed by subtracting the number of days of ENDS use within the past 30 days at wave w - 1 from that at wave w and coded as 1 = escalated, if the value was greater than zero (otherwise, coded as 0 = not escalated).

FINDINGS

Escalated ENDS use gradually decreased over time, with the lowest prevalence at wave 4 (4.0%) but sharply increasing at wave 5 (8.4%). Escalated ENDS use was associated with increased odds of using each substance (binge drinking, marijuana use, marijuana vaping, prescription and illicit drugs) and different combinations of polysubstance use between cigarette smoking, binge drinking and marijuana use (Ps < 0.05). In addition, sweet/fruit flavor use (versus menthol/mint) was associated with increased likelihood of reporting co-use of cigarettes and marijuana.

CONCLUSIONS

In the United States, the prevalence of young adults using electronic nicotine delivery systems appears to have increased steadily between 2013 and 2019, although the rate of increase may have started to accelerate in recent years. Escalated electronic nicotine delivery systems use and time-lagged established electronic nicotine delivery systems use appear to be prospectively associated with individual and combined substance use, particularly between cigarettes, alcohol and marijuana. Among established electronic nicotine delivery systems users, sweet/fruit flavor appears to be associated with increased risk of co-using cigarettes and marijuana.

Longitudinal Associations Between Use of Tobacco and Cannabis Among People Who Smoke Cigarettes in Real-world Smoking Cessation Treatment

OBJECTIVES

Cannabis use is common among people who use tobacco. However, little is known about the relationship between change in use of tobacco and cannabis over time. We examined the longitudinal associations between use of the two substances in a realworld smoking cessation context.

METHODS

This study analyzed data from a 3-month smoking cessation program delivered via Facebook in the San Francisco Bay Area, USA during 2016-2020. The sample included 487 participants who smoked cigarettes ( Mage = 25.4 years old, 39.6% Male, 40.3% White). The regressors (ie, frequency or number of days during the past 30 days using cigarettes, e-cigarettes, and cigars) and the outcome (ie, frequency of cannabis use) were measured at both baseline and 3-month follow-up. Random-effects modeling examined the longitudinal associations between the regressors and the outcome controlling for alcohol use and baseline demographics.

RESULTS

Participants who increased (or decreased) their frequency of use of cigarettes (β = 0.17, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 0.10, 0.24), e-cigarettes (β = 0.11, 95% CI = 0.05, 0.17), or cigars (β = 0.19, 95% CI = 0.06, 0.32) also increased (or decreased) their frequency of cannabis use after 3 months. Sexual minority participants (vs heterosexuals) (β = 2.12, 95% CI = 0.01, 4.24) and those whose education attainment being high school or less (vs higher education) (β = 3.89, 95% CI = 1.25, 6.53) were more likely to increase their frequency of cannabis use over time.

CONCLUSIONS

The findings indicated positive associations between change in use of tobacco and cannabis use. Promoting cessation among people who use tobacco may help to reduce their cannabis use.

Determining the prevalence of cannabis, tobacco, and vaping device mentions in online communities using natural language processing

INTRODUCTION

The relationship between cannabis, tobacco, and vaping devices is both rapidly changing and poorly understood, with consumers rapidly shifting between use of all three product types. Given this dynamic and evolving landscape, there is an urgent need to monitor and better understand co-use, dual-use, and transition patterns between these products. This study describes work that utilizes social media - in this case, Reddit - in conjunction with automated Natural Language Processing (NLP) methods to better understand cannabis, tobacco, and vaping device product usage patterns.

METHODS

We collected Reddit data from the period 2013-2018, sourced from eight popular, high-volume Reddit communities (subreddits) related to the three product categories. We then manually annotated (coded) a set of 2640 Reddit posts and trained a machine learning-based NLP algorithm to automatically identify and disambiguate between cannabis or tobacco mentions (both smoking and vaping) in Reddit posts. This classifier was then applied to all data derived from the eight subreddits, 767,788 posts in total.

RESULTS

The NLP algorithm achieved an overall moderate performance (overall F-score of 0.77). When applied to our large corpus of Reddit posts, we discovered that over 10% of posts in the smoking cessation subreddit r/stopsmoking were classified as referring to vaping nicotine, and that only 2% of posts from the subreddits r/electronic_cigarette and r/vaping were classified as referring to smoking (tobacco) cessation.

CONCLUSIONS

This study presents the results of applying an NLP algorithm designed to identify and distinguish between cannabis and tobacco mentions (both smoking and vaping) in Reddit posts, hence contributing to our currently limited understanding of co-use, dual-use, and transition patterns between these products.

Changes in cannabis, tobacco, and alcohol use among sexually active female adolescents and young adults over a twelve-year period ending in 2019

BACKGROUND

The United States has experienced an increasing divergence in cannabis, tobacco, and alcohol use among adolescents and young adults (AYA). We assessed the changes in cannabis, tobacco and alcohol use in an inner-city population of predominantly minority AYA females attending a large adolescent-specific health center in New York City.

METHODS

This was a longitudinal study of AYA women recruited and followed over a twelve-year period between 2007 and 2019. Lifetime and past 30-day use were assessed by self-administered questionnaire every six months. In addition, we assessed associations with race, ethnicity, sexual behaviors, receipt of social services, living situation at home (e.g., with or without parents), and use of other drugs.

RESULTS

Participants included 1549 AYA females aged 13-21 at baseline, 95% of whom were youth of color. Use of cannabis increased significantly over the twelve-year period, with frequent cannabis use (≥20 times in 30-days) increasing almost 18% per year (OR = 1.18; 95%CI:1.13-1.23). In contrast, past 30-day tobacco use declined over the same period (OR = 0.86; 95%CI:0.83-0.89). Past 30-day cannabis use was more likely among African Americans (OR = 1.33; 95%CI:1.08-1.63), women who had sex with both men and women compared to with men only (OR = 1.44; 95%CI:1.18-1.75), recent users of tobacco (OR = 2.20; 95%CI:1.92-2.52) and alcohol (OR = 2.84; 95%CI:2.52-3.20), and ever users of other drugs (OR = 1.69; 95%CI:1.44-1.99), independent of age, time and living situation.

CONCLUSIONS

Increasing rates of cannabis use and the association with concurrent tobacco and alcohol use in AYA females underscore the need to screen for unhealthy cannabis use, in addition to tobacco and alcohol, especially among inner-city AYA.

Multi-Substance Use Behaviors: Prevalence and Correlates of Alcohol, Tobacco and Other Drug (ATOD) Use among University Students in Finland

Virtually no studies appraised the co-use of alcohol, tobacco, and other drug (ATOD) among Finn undergraduates. We assessed the associations between sociodemographic, health, academic, policy, and lifestyle characteristics (independent variables); and individual, multiple and increasing ATOD use (dependent variables) using regression analyses. Data were collected by online questionnaire at the University of Turku, Finland (1177 students). Roughly 22% of the sample smoked, 21% ever used illicit drug/s, 41% were high frequency drinkers, and 31.4%, 16.3%, and 6.7% reported 1, 2, or 3 ATOD behaviors respectively. Individual ATOD use was significantly positively associated with the use of the other two substances [adjusted odds ratio (Adj OR range 1.893-3.311)]. Multiple ATOD use was negatively associated with being single (p = 0.021) or agreeing with total smoking or alcohol ban policy on campus (p < 0.0001 for each); but positively associated with not living with parents (p = 0.004). Increasing ATOD behaviors were significantly less likely among those agreeing with total smoking or alcohol ban policy on campus (p range 0.024 to <0.0001). Demographics significant to either individual, multiple, or increasing ATOD use included males, being single, not living with their parents during semesters, and to some extent, religiosity. Age, depressive symptoms, perceived stress, self-rated health, health awareness, income sufficiency, and academic variables were not associated with individual, multiple, or increasing ATOD use. Education and prevention efforts need to reinforce abstinence from ATOD, highlight their harmful outcomes, and target risk groups highlighted above. University strategies should be part of the wider country-wide successful ATOD control policies.

Post-legalization changes in marijuana use in a sample of young California adults

INTRODUCTION

Increasing marijuana use among young adults is a concern due to substantial acute and chronic health risks. More widespread use of marijuana may also lead to increased use of nicotine and tobacco products. California legalized commercial sales of marijuana for recreational use as of January 2018. To our knowledge no studies to date have examined subsequent changes in marijuana use. The goal of this study was to test the hypothesis that marijuana use frequency increased following legalization of recreational sales. We also hypothesized that increased marijuana frequency would predict greater frequency of nicotine/tobacco consumption.

METHODS

The study was a secondary analysis of a longitudinal study of tobacco use among non-daily cigarette smokers. Participants were 563 young adults (aged 18-24) enrolled in 2015-16 and followed quarterly for 3 years.

RESULTS

A piecewise multilevel regression model indicated that marijuana use frequency did not change over time, including following legalization. More frequent use was associated with younger age and identifying as white (ps < 0.001, which did not change after legalization. Marijuana frequency was moderated by sex (p < .001), with women reporting increasing and men decreasing use over time. It was also associated with tobacco use, and particularly with e-cigarette use following legalization (ps < 0.05).

CONCLUSIONS

Findings suggest legalization of recreational marijuana sales had a negligible overall impact on days of use among young adults, but may have prompted increased interest in marijuana among some, particularly women and e-cigarette users. The continuously evolving landscape around these products indicates that ongoing surveillance is critical.

Smoke in the air - Associations between experimentation with cannabis and the use of tobacco and nicotine products among 15-16-year-old school students

BACKGROUND

Cannabis is the most popular illicit drug among adolescents in developed countries, including Finland. The aim of this study was to estimate 1) how cannabis experimentation among Finnish adolescents changed between 2003 and 2019, and 2) whether the associations between cannabis experiments and factors related to it, especially the use of tobacco and nicotine products, changed during the same time period.

METHODS

The analyses are based on the European School Survey Project on Alcohol and Other Drugs data, collected from Finnish adolescents aged 15 to 16 in 2003, 2007, 2011, 2015, and 2019 (N = 20,630).

RESULTS

Experimentation with cannabis among Finnish adolescents has increased since the beginning of our follow-up. At the same time, alcohol use and smoking have decreased markedly, and attitudes toward cannabis use have become more relaxed. The association between smoking and cannabis experimentation has become weaker over time. However, the use of tobacco and nicotine products, especially polytobacco, is still a strong risk factor for experimentation with cannabis. The higher the number of tobacco or nicotine products used, the higher the probability for cannabis experimentation.

CONCLUSIONS

Experimentation with cannabis has previously been concentrated predominantly on adolescents who smoke, but recently non-smokers are increasingly trying cannabis. It is possible that alternative ways of using cannabis may have increased its use. Despite the strict cannabis policy in Finland, its use has increased, which may be an indication that youth cultures and images of different substances play a significant role in adolescents experimenting with cannabis.

Financial strain and electronic nicotine delivery systems use among U.S. young adults: A longitudinal panel analysis, 2013-2018

INTRODUCTION

Financial strain is associated with an increased likelihood of cigarette smoking, but less is known about its association with electronic nicotine delivery systems (ENDS) use. This study examined longitudinal associations of financial strain with ENDS use behaviors among young adults.

METHODS

We analyzed in 2020 four waves (2013-2018) of the Population Assessment of Tobacco and Health, a nationally representative longitudinal study. A total of 5740 U.S. young adults (aged 18-24 years at baseline) had matched data for all four waves. We used generalized linear mixed modeling which accounts for correlations between repeated measures. Weighted logistic regressions assessed the association between financial strain and three different types of ENDS use behaviors (i.e., everyday, some-day, and experimental use), adjusting for major confounders including poverty, mental health symptoms, and other substance use behaviors.

RESULTS

Frequency and proportion of everyday ENDS use showed a linear increase over time whereas some-day and experimental uses showed quadratic trends, increasing with a peak at Wave 2 and then decreasing over time. Financial strain prospectively predicted some-day (adjusted odds ratio [AOR] = 1.32; 95% CI = 1.03-1.69) and experimental (AOR = 1.25; 95% CI = 1.02-1.52) ENDS use, but not everyday use.

CONCLUSIONS

The findings of the current study indicate the need for distinctly different approaches for non-daily ENDS users from daily users. Our findings further suggest that ENDS use prevention and cessation efforts should consider financial strain of young adults particularly for non-daily users to thwart them from progressing towards nicotine dependence and long-term use.

Co-occurring Use of Cannabis and Tobacco and the Presence of Acute Respiratory Symptoms among Young Adult Light and Intermittent Smokers

BACKGROUND

Cannabis use and intermittent smoking are becoming increasingly prevalent among young adults. Thus, identifying health consequences of co-occurring use of these substances represents an emerging research priority. Purpose/Objectives: This study evaluated the relationship between tobacco/cannabis co-use and acute symptoms of respiratory illness among young adult intermittent smokers. We hypothesized that tobacco/cannabis co-use would be more strongly associated with respiratory symptoms relative to use of neither or one product. Methods: A secondary analysis of a three-year observational study was conducted. Non-daily smokers (n = 563) aged 18-24 were recruited via social media and completed electronic surveys at baseline and annually for two years, producing three total assessments. Past-two-week use of tobacco and cannabis was measured at each assessment, as was severity of six acute respiratory symptoms. The respiratory measure was dichotomized to indicate the presence or absence of symptoms. Results: Tobacco/cannabis co-use decreased from 54.8% at baseline to 43.4% at year two (p < .001). Mean respiratory symptoms also declined significantly over time (ps < .05). At each timepoint, co-use was more strongly associated with presence of respiratory symptoms than the use of neither product (aORs = 2.73-4.39, ps ≤ .013). Co-users were also 38%-183% more likely to endorse the presence of respiratory symptoms than single product users at each timepoint (aORs = 1.38-2.83, ps = .023-.212). Conclusions/Importance: Although co-occurring use of tobacco and cannabis by young adults may represent experimental use of multiple substances, it may also promote or exacerbate acute symptoms of respiratory illness. Further exploration with more granular patterns of co-use and across different routes of administration is warranted.

Factors Associated With Cannabis Use Among African American Nondaily Smokers

OBJECTIVES

Cannabis and tobacco dual use is a growing concern in the United States, especially among African Americans (AAs). Dual use increases nicotine dependence and poses negative health effects. Despite decreasing numbers of people who smoke daily, nondaily smokers (NDS) are increasing. Polytobacco use, including blunt use, is higher in AA NDS than AAs who smoke daily. This study examined factors associated with cannabis use among AA NDS.

METHODS

Adult AA NDS participated in a randomized controlled trial (n = 278) for smoking cessation. A subset of this sample (n = 262; mean age 48.2 years; 50% male) was analyzed to identify correlates of cannabis use. Logistic regression assessed the associations of demographic, smoking-related, and psychosocial variables with cannabis use.

RESULTS

Participants smoked cigarettes on an average of 18 days of the last 30 and used 4.5 cigarettes on smoking days. Of the participants analyzed, 38% used cannabis, including blunts (ie, cigars hollowed out filled with cannabis) at baseline. Cannabis use was associated with polytobacco product use not including blunts (odds ratio [OR] 2.11, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.18-3.77, P = 0.012), depressive symptoms (OR 1.22, 95% CI 1.05-1.42, P = 0.011), and younger age (OR 0.97, 95% CI 0.94-0.99, P = 0.004).

CONCLUSIONS

Rates of cannabis and tobacco dual use in our sample exceed national rates. Dual use poses harmful health effects that exceed the risk of either substance alone. Findings will inform future work in tailoring treatments to vulnerable groups of people who use both tobacco and cannabis.

Gender Differences in the Association between Marijuana and Menthol Cigarette Use among African American Adult Cigarette Smokers

Introduction: Despite the strong relationship between marijuana and tobacco use, especially among African American individuals and males, very few studies have examined the association between marijuana and menthol cigarette use. This study was designed to identify the prevalence of past month, past year and lifetime marijuana use and marijuana dependence among menthol and non-menthol cigarette smokers, as well as the association between marijuana and menthol cigarette use among African American female and male cigarette smokers. Methods: Data were drawn from 1,173 African American adult cigarette smokers in the 2017 National Survey on Drug Use and Health. Results: Overall, 8.8%, 13.9% and 44.7% of African American menthol and non-menthol cigarette smokers reported past month, past year and lifetime marijuana use, respectively. Weighted multivariable logistic regression models revealed a significant interaction between gender and past month marijuana use on menthol cigarette use (AOR = 1.49, 95% CI: 1.21-2.42, p < .05). Past month marijuana use was associated with an increased odds of past month menthol cigarette use (relative to non-menthol cigarette use) among females, but a decreased odds of past of past month menthol cigarette use among males. Conclusions: When stratified by gender, marijuana use is differentially related to menthol cigarette use among African American adults. Given the prevalence of menthol cigarette use among this population, it is important to examine factors such as marijuana use that could be targeted in prevention and treatment interventions for African Americans, especially females, who are at risk for smoking or are currently smoking menthol cigarettes. Implications: This study found that marijuana use was associated with an increased odds of menthol cigarette use among African American females, while marijuana use was associated with a decreased odds of menthol cigarette use among their male counterparts. The impact of marijuana use on menthol cigarette smoking differs among females and males, highlighting the need for gender-tailored interventions that target marijuana use among African American individuals, especially females, who are at risk for smoking or are currently smoking menthol cigarettes.

A Multiple Correspondence Analysis of Patterns of CBD Use in Hemp and Marijuana Users

Background: With the passing of the 2018 Agriculture Improvement Act that legalized hemp-derived products, i.e., cannabidiol (CBD), the use of CBD has increased exponentially. To date, the few studies that have characterized individuals who use CBD suggest that co-use of CBD and tetrahydrocannabinol (THC)-dominant cannabis, i.e., marijuana, is highly prevalent. It is, therefore, important to investigate the relationship between CBD use and marijuana use to understand the antecedents and consequences of co-use of these two cannabis products. Methods: We conducted an online survey using structured questionnaires to determine differences in CBD users with (CBD+MJ) and without co-morbid marijuana use. Group comparisons were carried out using chi-square tests and ANOVA. Multiple correspondence analysis (MCA) with bootstrap ratio testing was performed to examine the relationship between the categorical data. Results: We received 182 survey responses from current CBD users. CBD+MJ had more types of CBD administration (F = 17.07, p < 0.001) and longer lifetime duration of CBD use (χ2 = 12.85, p < 0.05). Results from the MCA yielded two statistically significant dimensions that accounted for 77% of the total variance. Dimension 1 (representing 57% of the variance) associated CBD+MJ with indication of CBD use for medical ailments, use of CBD for more than once a day for longer than 2 years, applying CBD topically or consuming it via vaping or edibles, being female, and, having lower educational attainment. Dimension 2 (representing 20% of the variance) separated the groups primarily on smoking-related behaviors where CBD+MJ was associated with smoking CBD and nicotine. Conclusions: Identifying the factors that influence use of CBD and marijuana can inform future studies on the risks and benefits associated with each substance as well as the impacts of policies related to cannabis-based products.