TY - JOUR
T1 - Awareness and Use of Short-fill E-liquids by Youth in England in 2021
T2 - Findings from the ITC Youth Tobacco and Vaping Survey
AU - Taylor, Eve
AU - East, Katherine
AU - Reid, Jessica L
AU - Hammond, David
N1 - Funding Information:
The 2021 ITC Youth Tobacco and Vaping Survey was funded by a contribution from Health Canada’s Substance Use and Addictions Programme (SUAP). Annual survey waves 1–4 were supported by a P01 grant (1P01CA200512) from the US National Institutes of Health. Additional support was provided by a Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR)-Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC) Applied Public Health Research Chair (DH). This study was supported by a Project Grant from Cancer Research UK (PPRCTAGPJT\100008). KE is also a recipient of fellowship funding from the Society for the Study of Addiction (SSA). EVT is funded by the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) Health Protection Research Unit in Environmental Exposures and Health, a partnership between the UK Health Security Agency and Imperial College London.
Publisher Copyright:
© Author(s) (or their employer(s)) 2023. Re-use permitted under CC BY. Published by BMJ.
PY - 2023/3/26
Y1 - 2023/3/26
N2 - Background: Refillable e-cigarettes were popular among youth in England in 2021. The UK Tobacco and Related Products Regulations (TRPR) limits e-liquids to 20 mg/mL of nicotine in a 10 mL bottle. Short-fill e-liquids, which are not covered by TRPR regulations, are typically nicotine-free and come in larger, underfilled bottles allowing customisation with the addition of € nicotine shots'. This paper investigates awareness, use, and reasons for use of short-fill e-liquids among youth in England. Methods: Data are from the online 2021 International Tobacco Control Youth Survey, comprising 4224 youth (aged 16-19 years) in England. Weighted logistic regression models investigated associations between awareness and past 30-day use of short-fills by smoking status, vaping status, nicotine strength vaped and participant demographics. Reasons for use were also reported. Results: Approximately one-quarter (23.0%) of youth in England reported awareness of short-fill e-liquids. Among youth who had vaped in the past 30 days, 22.1% had used short-fills in the past 30 days; use was most prevalent among those who were also smoking (43.2%) and those who reported usually vaping nicotine concentrations of 2.1% (21 mg/mL) or more (40.8%). € Convenience of a bigger bottle' was the most selected reason for use (45.0%), followed by € less expensive than regular e-liquids' (37.6%). Conclusions: Awareness of short-fills was common among youth in 2021, including among those who had never vaped or smoked. Among youth who vaped in the past 30 days, short-fill use was more prevalent among those who also smoked and those who vaped nicotine-containing e-liquids. Integration of short-fill products into existing e-cigarette regulations should be considered.
AB - Background: Refillable e-cigarettes were popular among youth in England in 2021. The UK Tobacco and Related Products Regulations (TRPR) limits e-liquids to 20 mg/mL of nicotine in a 10 mL bottle. Short-fill e-liquids, which are not covered by TRPR regulations, are typically nicotine-free and come in larger, underfilled bottles allowing customisation with the addition of € nicotine shots'. This paper investigates awareness, use, and reasons for use of short-fill e-liquids among youth in England. Methods: Data are from the online 2021 International Tobacco Control Youth Survey, comprising 4224 youth (aged 16-19 years) in England. Weighted logistic regression models investigated associations between awareness and past 30-day use of short-fills by smoking status, vaping status, nicotine strength vaped and participant demographics. Reasons for use were also reported. Results: Approximately one-quarter (23.0%) of youth in England reported awareness of short-fill e-liquids. Among youth who had vaped in the past 30 days, 22.1% had used short-fills in the past 30 days; use was most prevalent among those who were also smoking (43.2%) and those who reported usually vaping nicotine concentrations of 2.1% (21 mg/mL) or more (40.8%). € Convenience of a bigger bottle' was the most selected reason for use (45.0%), followed by € less expensive than regular e-liquids' (37.6%). Conclusions: Awareness of short-fills was common among youth in 2021, including among those who had never vaped or smoked. Among youth who vaped in the past 30 days, short-fill use was more prevalent among those who also smoked and those who vaped nicotine-containing e-liquids. Integration of short-fill products into existing e-cigarette regulations should be considered.
KW - adolescent
KW - vaping
KW - nicotine
KW - electronic nicotine delivery systems
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85159161200&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1136/tc-2022-057871
DO - 10.1136/tc-2022-057871
M3 - Article
SN - 0964-4563
JO - Tobacco Control
JF - Tobacco Control
M1 - 22057871
ER -