Vaping tied to higher risk that teens will try marijuana

(Reuters Health, April 23) Teens that vape (use electronic cigarettes) are probably twice as likely to smoke marijuana as teens who don’t, according to a study entitled “E-Cigarette and Liquid Nicotine Exposures Among Young Children.”

See Related: Teens and Vaping 

Researchers surveyed 10,000 teens between ages 12 and 17. They found that teens between 12 and 14 were 2.7 times more likely to smoke marijuana if they tried vaping; the older teens were 1.6 times more likely.

“The brain is still developing during the teen years, nicotine exposure might lead to changes in the central nervous system that predispose teens to dependence on other drugs of abuse,” lead study author Hongying Dai told Reuters.

“Experimenting with e-cigarettes might also increase youth’s curiosity about marijuana, reduce perceived harm of marijuana use, and increase the social access to marijuana from peers and friends.” Read more.