Use of Cigarettes and E-Cigarettes and Dual Use Among Adult Employees in the US Workplace

• Published in: Preventing chronic disease 2020-02, Vol.17, p.E16, Article 190217
• Main Authors: Kava, Christine M, Hannon, Peggy A, Harris, Jeffrey R
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Adolescent; Adult; Adults; Aged; Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System; Cigarette Smoking - epidemiology; Data analysis; Education; Electronic cigarettes; Employees; Family income; Female; Humans; Male; Middle Aged; Occupational stress; Original Research; Pacific Islander people; Prevalence; Secondary schools; Self employment; Smoking; Smoking Cessation - statistics & numerical data; Sociodemographics; Tobacco; United States - epidemiology; Vaping; Vaping - epidemiology; Workplace - legislation & jurisprudence; Workplace - statistics & numerical data; Young Adult
• ISSN: 1545-1151; 1545-1151
• DOI: 10.5888/pcd17.190217

Evidence-based interventions for tobacco control in the US workplace can reach a large audience. The purpose of our study was to explore the prevalence and determinants of type of tobacco use (ie, cigarettes only, e-cigarettes only, or dual use) among adult employees in the United States and to examine type of use by state. We used data from the 2017 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System to examine the prevalence of cigarette use, e-cigarette use, dual use, and quit attempts. We used multinomial logistic regression to examine the relationships between sociodemographic characteristics and type of tobacco product used, and we estimated adjusted prevalence. Approximately 17% of respondents were current smokers, 5% were current e-cigarette users, and 2% were dual users. E-cigarette-only and dual use were generally highest among young (aged 18-24), male, and less-educated respondents and lower for respondents who identified as black, Asian/Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander, or Hispanic than for white respondents. Cigarette-only and dual use were higher for respondents who did not have health care coverage. Prevalence by state of e-cigarette use only ranged from 1.2% (Vermont) to 3.9% (Arkansas), whereas the prevalence of dual use ranged from 0.6% (District of Columbia) to 4.0% (Oklahoma). Prevalence of cigarette, e-cigarette, and dual use varied by sociodemographic characteristics and by state. These findings can support targeting of specific populations when designing and implementing evidence-based interventions for tobacco control in workplace settings.