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. 2020 Jan;29(1):89-95.
doi: 10.1136/tobaccocontrol-2018-054654. Epub 2019 Jan 29.

Awareness and interest in IQOS heated tobacco products among youth in Canada, England and the USA

Christine D Czoli  1   2 , Christine M White  3 , Jessica L Reid  3 , Richard J OConnor  4 , David Hammond  3
Affiliations

Awareness and interest in IQOS heated tobacco products among youth in Canada, England and the USA

Christine D Czoli et al. Tob Control. 2020 Jan.

Abstract

Introduction: Heated tobacco products (HTPs), such as IQOS, have been introduced in a growing number of international markets. However, little is known about perceptions of HTP products among youth.

Methods: Data are from wave 1 of the International Tobacco Control Youth Tobacco and E-cigarette Survey (2017), a web-based cohort survey of people aged 16-19 years from Canada, England and the USA. Respondents (n=12 064) were shown an image of IQOS and asked about their awareness, interest in trying and susceptibility to trying the product. Youth awareness, interest in trying and susceptibility to trying IQOS were analysed using descriptive statistics, and logistic regression models were used to examine correlates of these outcomes.

Results: Overall, 7.0% of youth reported awareness of IQOS (England=5.6%, Canada=6.4% and USA=9.1%) and 38.6% expressed interest in trying the product (England=41.8%, Canada=33.0% and USA=40.9%). Within each country, all key outcomes varied by smoking status: greater proportions of youth who were currently smoking or had a history of smoking reported being aware of, interested in trying and susceptible to trying IQOS. Interest and susceptibility to trying IQOS were associated with male sex, current tobacco use and current e-cigarette use. Across all countries, susceptibility to trying IQOS (25.1%) was higher than for tobacco cigarettes (19.3%), but lower than for e-cigarettes (29.1%).

Conclusions: Awareness of HTPs, such as IQOS, is emerging among youth in Canada, England and the USA. Interest in trying these products is very high among smokers, but also present among non-smokers.

Keywords: electronic nicotine delivery devices; prevention; public policy; surveillance and monitoring.

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Conflict of interest statement

Competing interests: RJO is a member of the FDA’s Tobacco Products Scientific Advisory Committee which reviewed the IQOS MRTP application. Views expressed herein do not necessarily reflect those of the Committee or of the FDA. DH has provided paid testimony in tobacco litigation on behalf of governments and class-action plaintiffs on issues related to tobacco product science and regulation. The other authors have no competing interest relevant to this article to disclose.

Figures

Figure 1:
Figure 1:
IQOS heated tobacco product device and tobacco sticks
Figure 2:
Figure 2:
Susceptibility to trying conventional cigarettes, IQOS, and e-cigarettes among never-smoking and never-vaping youth, by country (N=7,012) Note: Analyses conducted using weighted data. Respondents with missing data are not included in weighted estimates.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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