Research presentation
The course of tobacco use from adolescence to young adulthood

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jadohealth.2003.11.073Get rights and content

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Purpose

Many epidemiological studies have documented the prevalence and cross-sectional associations of teenage smoking. Few have examined the longitudinal course and very few have so far tracked the natural history of smoking from onset to maturity.

Methods

These findings derive from the Victorian Adolescent Health Cohort Study, that has tracked a community sample of 1947 14-year-olds on eight occasions through to their mid-twenties. Tobacco use was measured at each point using self-report frequency of use, a seven-day retrospective diary and in young adulthood the Fagerstrom Questionnaire for nicotine dependence.

Results

Over 60% of the sample had experimented with smoking by the age of 24 years. At this point 23% of subjects were ex-smokers, 9% occasional (less than daily) smokers, 18% low dose daily smokers and 11% high dose (10+ cigarettes/day) daily smokers. The predictors of smoking initiation differed in adolescence from young adulthood. For the teens peer smoking (Odds Ratio 1.7, 95% confidence intervals 1.3, 2.4), previous cannabis use (OR 3.8, 1.5, 9.6) and earlier depressive symptoms (OR 1.8, 1.2,

Conclusions

There is considerable variability in the early course of smoking. Occasional smokers diminish in young adulthood with most earlier smokers either quitting or progressing to heavy use. Cannabis use is now an important risk factor for incident smoking both in adolescents and young adults. Success in education and employment predicts success in smoking cessation in young adults.

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