Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2021 Dec:153:106800.
doi: 10.1016/j.ypmed.2021.106800. Epub 2021 Sep 11.

Cannabis vaping among adults in the United States: Prevalence, trends, and association with high-risk behaviors and adverse respiratory conditions

Ellen Boakye  1 , Olufunmilayo H Obisesan  2 , S M Iftekhar Uddin  3 , Omar El-Shahawy  4 , Omar Dzaye  5 , Albert D Osei  6 , Emelia J Benjamin  7 , Andrew C Stokes  8 , Rose Marie Robertson  9 , Aruni Bhatnagar  10 , Michael J Blaha  11
Affiliations

Cannabis vaping among adults in the United States: Prevalence, trends, and association with high-risk behaviors and adverse respiratory conditions

Ellen Boakye et al. Prev Med. 2021 Dec.

Erratum in

Abstract

The e-cigarette or vaping product-use-associated lung injury outbreak in the United States has raised concerns about the potential health effects of cannabis vaping, a method of cannabis use that is becoming increasingly popular. We used 2017-2019 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System data to estimate yearly prevalence and trends of past-30-day cannabis use and vaping among US adults. We used multivariable logistic regression to evaluate the associations of cannabis vaping with high-risk behaviors, asthma, and other respiratory symptoms. Our sample size was 160,209 (53,945-2017; 55,475-2018; and 50,789-2019). Past-30-day cannabis use prevalence increased from 10.0% (95% CI, 9.4%-10.7%) in 2017 to 13.4% (12.8%-12.0%) in 2019. Similarly, past-30-day cannabis vaping prevalence increased from 1.0% (0.8%-1.2%) to 2.0% (1.7%-2.2%) over the same period, with the greatest increase, 1.2% to 3.9%, observed among young adults (18-24 years). Individuals who vaped cannabis were more likely to concurrently vape nicotine. Cannabis vaping was associated with increased odds of heavy alcohol use (aOR, 1.95; 95% CI, 1.45-2.63), binge drinking (aOR, 2.82; 95% CI, 2.25-3.54), and other high-risk behaviors (aOR, 2.47; 95% CI, 1.89-3.24). In analyses adjusting for sociodemographic characteristics and body mass index, cannabis vaping was not associated with asthma (aOR, 1.03; 95% CI, 0.64-1.64) or other respiratory symptoms (aOR, 1.08; 95% CI, 0.44-2.63). Adjusting for nicotine vaping did not substantively alter these associations. The prevalence of past-30-day cannabis vaping has increased, particularly among young adults, and was associated with high-risk behaviors. Although there was no association between cannabis vaping and asthma or other respiratory symptoms, the increasing trends of cannabis vaping, particularly among young adults, raise concern and underscore the need for continued surveillance.

Keywords: Asthma; Cannabis; High-risk behaviors; Respiratory symptoms; Trends; Vaping.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

Authorship Disclosure Statement

The authors have no conflicts of interest to disclose

Declaration of interests

The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper.

Figures

Figure 1:
Figure 1:
Trends in Cannabis Use, Cannabis Vaping, and the Proportion of Cannabis Users who Vaporize as Primary Method of Use Among US Adults (BRFSS 2017–2019)
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Abeles M, Popofsky S, Wen A, Valsamis C, Webb A, Halaby C, Pirzada M, 2020. Vaping‐associated lung injury caused by inhalation of cannabis oil. Pediatr. Pulmonol 55, 226–228. 10.1002/ppul.24579 - DOI - PubMed
    1. Abrams DI, Vizoso HP, Shade SB, Jay C, Kelly ME, Benowitz NL, 2007. Vaporization as a Smokeless Cannabis Delivery System: A Pilot Study. Clin. Pharmacol. Ther 82, 572–578. 10.1038/sj.clpt.6100200 - DOI - PubMed
    1. Adapa S, Gayam V, Konala VM, Annangi S, Raju MP, Bezwada V, McMillan C, Dalal H, Mandal A, Naramala S, 2020. Cannabis Vaping–Induced Acute Pulmonary Toxicity: Case Series and Review of Literature. J. Investig. Med. High Impact Case Reports 10.1177/2324709620947267 - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Agrawal A, Nelson EC, Bucholz KK, Tillman R, Grucza RA, Statham DJ, Madden PA, Martin NG, Heath AC, Lynskey MT, 2017. Major depressive disorder, suicidal thoughts and behaviours, and cannabis involvement in discordant twins: a retrospective cohort study. The Lancet Psychiatry 4, 706–714. 10.1016/S2215-0366(17)30280-8 - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Aldington S, Williams M, Nowitz M, Weatherall M, Pritchard A, McNaughton A, Robinson G, Beasley R, 2007. Effects of cannabis on pulmonary structure, function and symptoms. Thorax 62, 1058–1063. 10.1136/thx.2006.077081 - DOI - PMC - PubMed

Publication types