A new analysis of Center of expertise and reference in public health de Québec tells us that the majority of young adults have not changed their consumption of tobacco or vaping products during the pandemic.
NO MAJOR CHANGES IN 2021
The COVID-19 pandemic has caused major upheavals in the lives of Quebecers, yet a longitudinal study has just revealed that the majority of young Quebec adults have not changed their consumption of tobacco or vaping products during the pandemic.
This study tells us that the prevalence of weekly or daily cigarette use decreased between 2017-2020 and 2020-2021, from 18% to 12%, while the prevalence of electronic cigarette use increased slightly in over the same period (from 4% to 5%).
When it comes to vaping, a higher proportion of participants living alone (11%), not working (9%) or born in Canada (6%) used it weekly or daily in the last year. It should be noted that among non-users and non-daily users, 7% initiated the use of tobacco cigarettes between 2017-2020 and between 2020-2021, a similar proportion being observed in relation to the use of tobacco cigarettes. vaping.
Among tobacco cigarette smokers, 53% reduced or stopped using them between cycle 23 (2017-2020) and cycle 24 (2020-2021), while this is the case for 73% of users of tobacco cigarettes. electronic cigarette. This part of the study alone seems to show that vaping clearly contributes to smoking cessation.
This longitudinal study is one of the first in Canada to look at fluctuations in the use of psychoactive substances during the COVID-19 pandemic. It generally indicates that the use of tobacco or vaping products among young adults in Quebec has not experienced any major upheaval in 2021.
