[ad_1]
(Reuters Health) – According to one study, about one in 11 American high school students reportedly used cannabis in electronic cigarettes.
In 2016, researchers surveyed more than 20,000 young people between the ages of nine and 19, including about 5,200 children and adolescents who reported having used e-cigarettes at least once.
Nearly one in three young electronic cigarette users said they tried cannabis with electronic cigarettes at least once, according to the results of an investigation.
Overall, about 9% of students had used marijuana, including 4.5% of high school students and 12.4% of high school students.
"Cannabis smoke contains many of the same toxins, irritants, and carcinogens as tobacco smoke," said lead author Katrina Trivers of the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta. .
"Although the use of cannabis through an electronic cigarette or edible products does not have the same risks of smoking, there are still health risks," Trivers said by e-mail.
Major tobacco companies, including Altria Group Inc., Lorillard Tobacco Co and Reynolds American Inc, all develop electronic cigarettes. The battery-powered devices feature a shiny tip and a heating element that turns liquid nicotine and other flavors into a cloud of steam that users inhale.
Earlier this month, the US Food and Drug Administration proposed a crackdown on sales of flavored electronic cigarettes to combat what regulators have described as a teenage vape epidemic.
The researchers acknowledge in the JAMA Pediatrics study that the study was not a controlled experiment designed to prove whether or how vaping alone or the use of cannabis in electronic cigarettes could directly cause health problems.
Yet, they say, their findings add to earlier data suggesting that e-cigarettes could be a gateway to smoking and experimenting with drugs.
"Electronic cigarettes can also be used to deliver nicotine and other drugs, including cannabis or marijuana," said Trivers. "Cannabis or marijuana can be used in various ways in an electronic cigarette, for example by directly adding hash oil, wax and other THC-containing liquids to the e-liquid section. from an electronic cigarette.
Some previous studies suggest that cannabis use during adolescence can have a negative impact on learning and memory and impair academic outcomes, note the study's authors.
Vapors have also been associated with respiratory problems as well as heart and vascular lesions.
Wayne Hall of the Center for Substance Abuse Research at the Substance Abuse Research Center of the University of Queensland, Australia.
Especially in places where marijuana is legal for recreational or medical purposes, it is not difficult for teens to have access to cannabis oil or extracts for use with vaping devices.
"Cannabis-based products, whether for medical or recreational use, such as cannabis oils and cannabis extracts, are marketed to adults for use in vaporizers as a safer means." and effective at getting cannabis, "Hall said.
SOURCE: bit.ly/2OxL4ai JAMA Pediatrics, online September 17, 2018.
Source link
