A new study set out to understand how flavored vaping products may impact smoking uptake and cessation in young people.
The systematic review evaluated 58 interventional, observational and qualitative studies conducted from 2004 to 2020 among 512,874 young people younger than 18 years with data on use of e-cigarettes with flavored liquids. Included studies compared flavored e-cigarettes vs. another e-cigarette flavor, flavored e-cigarettes vs. unflavored e-cigarettes, and e-cigarette uptake, prevalence, incidence and outcomes in smokers vs. nonsmokers.
Total quality of evidence among all studies was low, according to the researchers, with 39 cross-sectional survey studies, 11 longitudinal cohort studies that assessed e-cigarette trajectories and eight qualitative studies that reported on e-cigarette user experiences.
However, the researchers said there was not sufficient evidence to suggest e-cigarette flavor use was associated with uptake of tobacco cigarettes. Moreover, no studies reported clear associations between e-cigarette flavors and tobacco cessation, and there were no reports of adverse events related to use of flavored e-cigarettes.
According to the researchers, an important public health goal is to protect youths from harms associated with tobacco smoke exposure, and the attractiveness of e-cigarette flavors may play an important role in diverting youths from tobacco and aiding in tobacco cessation.
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