Teen tobacco use in the United States hit a 25-year low, driven by a sharp decline in vaping, a new analysis by the Centers for Disease Control and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) said.
Almost all tobacco product use starts during adolescence, according to the CDC. While teen tobacco use is declining, health officials warned that their work is not done.
The estimated number of middle and high school students who used at least one tobacco product, including cigarettes, electronic cigarettes and nicotine pouches, currently (in the past 30 days) went from 2.8 million in 2023 to 2.25 million this year, according to an analysis published Thursday by the CDC.
The CDC and the FDA analyzed data from the 2024 National Youth Tobacco Survey, which was collected from January 22 to May 22, 2024, and included responses from 29,861 middle and high school students at 283 schools.
The record-low numbers are largely driven by the drop in high school vaping, according to the CDC. From 2023 to 2024, vaping in high schools went down from 10 percent to 7.8 percent.
“Reaching a 25-year low for youth tobacco product use is an extraordinary milestone for public health. However, with more than 2 million youth using tobacco products and certain groups not experiencing declines in use, our mission is far from complete,” Dr. Deirdre Lawrence Kittner, director of CDC’s Office on Smoking and Health, said in a press release Thursday. “We must remain committed to public health efforts to ensure all youth can live healthy, tobacco-free lives.”
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Despite a drop in vaping, electronic cigarettes, or e-cigarettes, were the most commonly reported tobacco products currently used by middle and high school students this year (5.9 percent). Nicotine pouches were the second most commonly reported tobacco product used (1.8 percent), followed by cigarettes (1.4 percent).
The CDC mentions in their press release Thursday that the decline in tobacco product use is likely the result of factors such as “price increases, mass media campaigns to educate youth about the harmful effects of all tobacco products, and comprehensive smoke-free policies that include e-cigarettes.”
There are, however, disparities among different demographics of students using tobacco. From 2023 to 2024, the current use of any tobacco product significantly decreased among female students and among Hispanic students. But in the same period, current use of any tobacco product increased among American Indian and Alaska Native students.
“We’re headed in the right direction when it comes to reducing tobacco product use among our nation’s youth,” Dr. Brian King, director of the FDA’s Center for Tobacco Products, said in Thursday’s release. “But we can’t take our foot off the gas. Continued vigilance is needed to continue to reduce all forms of tobacco product use among youth. Addressing disparities remains an essential part of these efforts to ensure that we don’t leave anyone behind.”
This article includes reporting from The Associated Press.
