Use of Electronic and Conventional Cigarettes and Self-Rated Mental Health in High School Students
<b>Background:</b> Youth tobacco use remains a significant public health concern, particularly in urban communities disproportionately burdened by health disparities. In Baltimore City, where tobacco-related harms are elevated, understanding the relationship between tobacco use—including...
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| Main Authors: | , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
MDPI AG
2025-07-01
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| Series: | Children |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2227-9067/12/7/902 |
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| Summary: | <b>Background:</b> Youth tobacco use remains a significant public health concern, particularly in urban communities disproportionately burdened by health disparities. In Baltimore City, where tobacco-related harms are elevated, understanding the relationship between tobacco use—including e-cigarettes—and mental health among high school students is essential for guiding equitable prevention and cessation strategies. The CEASE (Communities Engaged and Advocating for a Smoke-free Environment) program, in collaboration with the American Lung Association’s Not On Tobacco (N-O-T) initiative, developed an online school-based survey to inform community-responsive interventions. <b>Aims:</b> This study aimed to examine the associations between cigarette use, including conventional cigarette use, and self-rated mental health among high school students in Baltimore City. <b>Methods:</b> High school students in Baltimore City completed an anonymous online survey that assessed demographic characteristics, tobacco knowledge and use, mental health, and related behaviors. Self-rated mental health was dichotomized as poor versus fair/good. Tobacco use categories included current use of e-cigarettes and conventional cigarettes. Logistic regression models were used to examine associations between tobacco use and self-rated mental health, adjusting for age, gender, race, and parental education. Odds ratios (ORs) with 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were reported. <b>Results:</b> No statistically significant associations were found between self-rated mental health and e-cigarette use and conventional tobacco use after adjusting for covariates. <b>Conclusions:</b> The absence of a significant association may reflect unique aspects of the social context in Baltimore City, where youth may not use tobacco products as a coping mechanism for mental health challenges. Alternatively, it may be due to limitations in measurement, particularly the use of a single-item mental health assessment. These findings should be considered preliminary. Future research using more comprehensive mental health measures and larger samples is warranted to further explore these complex relationships. |
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| ISSN: | 2227-9067 |