E-Cigs May Be Just the Beginning

Vaping may be just the beginning of some teens' nicotine use, according to a new study.

Electronic cigarette use may be linked to traditional tobacco smoking frequency and even heavy smoking among teenagers, this study found.

The University of Southern California Keck School of Medicine researchers behind this study looked at data from surveys that were administered to 10th graders at 10 public schools in Los Angeles.

The survey revealed that 37 percent of 10th graders in the United States reported using an e-cig (vaping). In addition, the survey revealed that vaping often transitioned into smoking cigarettes. The higher the level of baseline vaping, the more tobacco smoking frequency, these researchers found.

In other words, vaping more frequently was linked to a higher risk of more frequent and heavy smoking after a six-month follow-up period.

It was unknown, however, whether the teens who reported smoking were doing so experimentally or habitually. The researchers called for additional research on this subject.

This study was published in JAMA.

Information about funding sources and potential conflicts of interest was not available at the time of publication.