Tobacco Product Use Among High School Students— Youth Risk Behavior Survey, United States, 2019

MMWR Introduction

Tobacco product use is the leading cause of preventable disease, disability, and death in the United States. This report uses data from the 2019 Youth Risk Behavior Survey to assess ever use of cigarettes and electronic vapor products; current use (≥1 day during the 30 days before the survey) of tobacco products; frequent use (≥20 days during the 30 days before the survey) of tobacco products among current users of tobacco products; trends in use over time; and usual source of electronic vapor products among current electronic vapor product users.

Although current cigarette smoking, cigar smoking, and smokeless tobacco use has decreased among high school students, the increased prevalence of electronic vapor product use among youths is concerning. Continued surveillance for all tobacco product use is warranted for guiding and evaluating public health policy at the local, state, tribal, and national levels.

MMWR Highlights

Ever tobacco product use, 2019

• Electronic vapor products, 1%.
• Cigarettes, 1%.

Current (≥1 day during the 30 days before the survey) tobacco product use, 2019

• Electronic vapor products, 32.7%.
• Cigarettes, 6.0%.
• Cigars, 5.7%.
• Smokeless tobacco, 3.8%.
• Any tobacco product, 36.5%.
• Two or more tobacco products, 8.2%.

Frequent (≥20 days during the 30 days before the survey) tobacco product use among current users of each product, 2019

• Electronic vapor products, 32.6%.
• Smokeless tobacco, 28.5%.
• Cigarettes, 22.2%.
• Cigars, 18.4%.

Trends in tobacco product use over time

• Significant decreases occurred in current cigarette smoking (1991: 27.5%; 2019: 6.0%), cigar smoking (1997: 22.0%; 2019: 5.7%), and smokeless tobacco use (2017: 5.5%; 2019: 3.8%).
• Significant increases occurred in current electronic vapor product use (2015: 24.1%; 2019: 32.7%), and any tobacco product use (2017: 19.5%; 2019: 36.5%).

Source of electronic vapor products among current electronic vapor product users, 2019

• Among current electronic vapor product users aged 17 years or younger, the most commonly reported source was borrowing them from someone else (42.8%).
• Among current electronic vapor product users aged 18 years or older, the most commonly cited source was buying them in a store (56.4%).