Results from the 2024 Annual National Youth Tobacco Survey

 

E-cigarettes are the most used tobacco product among U.S. youth. Recently there's been some good news from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) stating that youth vaping levels have fallen to the lowest in a decade.

The National Youth Tobacco Survey (NYTS) is an annual school-based, self-administered survey of middle school (grades 6-8) and high school (grades 9-12) students in the U.S. In this survey of nearly 30,000 students conducted this year from January 22-May 22, researchers found that the proportion of middle and high school students who reported current e-cigarette use within the past 30 days decreased from 2.13 million students in 2023 to 1.63 million students in 2024. The total number of youth e-cigarette users is now about one-third of its peak when numbers totaled more than 5 million in 2019.

Director of the FDA’s Center for Tobacco Products, Brian King, attributed the overall decline in part to legal steps the FDA has taken in partnership with the Justice Department to curb use. Since 2023, the FDA has issued more than 1,000 warning letters and 240 civil penalties to retailers and others in the supply chain. 

King stated, “This data is a good reminder that we are making progress in terms of continued declines of the leading tobacco products among kids, but we can’t rest on our laurels as there is still more to do to further reduce youth e-cigarette use.”

Key vaping statistics and data from the 2024 National Youth Tobacco Survey show:

Youth Vaping – the number of middle and high school students who vape dropped to its lowest level in a decade. 5.9% of students reported vaping in 2024; down from 7.7% in 2023.

Device Types – the most common types of devices used by students who vape are disposables (55.6%), followed by prefilled or refillable pods or cartridges (15.6%), and tanks or mod systems (7.0%).

Frequency of Use – 26.3% of students who vape do so daily – 38.4% say they vape at least 20 of the last 30 days.

Nicotine Pouches – the wide availability and growing sales of nicotine pouches has raised concerns about potential use of these products among youth. A majority of those who use nicotine pouches use flavored products with fruit being the most popular flavor (62.8%), followed by candy (33.3%), and mint (25.1%). 

Youth use of tobacco products in any form, including e-cigarettes and nicotine pouches, is unsafe. We must continue to encourage strict tobacco control regulations and enforcement to prevent and reduce e-cig and nicotine patch use and prioritize the health and safety of today’s youth.

Review the CDC Morbidity & Mortality Weekly Report 

 https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/volumes/73/wr/mm7335a3.htm?s_cid=mm7335a3_w