Minnesota Kids With Asthma Are More Likely To Vape: Study

MINNESOTA — A new analysis by the Minnesota Department of Health finds that Minnesota high school and middle school students who have asthma are more likely than their peers without asthma to vape, smoke, and be exposed to secondhand smoke.

Analyzing data from the 2017 Minnesota Youth Tobacco Survey, MDH researchers found nearly 30 percent of youth who have asthma are using a tobacco product compared to 24 percent of youth without asthma. E-cigarettes are the most commonly used tobacco products among youth with or without asthma.

About one in five students in grades 6-12 reported they have asthma, according to the survey. Of those students, Minnesota youth who vaped or smoked were more likely to have frequent asthma symptoms in the past 30 days.

Tobacco smoke is a powerful trigger of asthma. Tobacco smoke contains irritating substances (a mixture of more than 7,000 chemicals) and when inhaled, it irritates the linings of the lungs. These substances can bring on an asthma symptoms or an asthma attack.

E-cigarette aerosol – commonly called vape smoke – also contains harmful chemicals, such as ultrafine particles, heavy metals like nickel, tin and lead, and other cancer-causing chemicals. E-cigarette use can cause increased coughing and wheezing in teenagers, and an increase in asthma symptoms, according to a recent report by the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine.

“The current epidemic of e-cigarette use among young people is bad in many ways, and youth who have asthma are particularly vulnerable,” said Minnesota Assistant Commissioner of Health Dr. Courtney Jordan Baechler in a statement.

“That’s why it is so important for us to get the word out. Any use of tobacco, including e-cigarettes and vapes, is harmful, but youth with asthma who smoke or vape are likely to experience more intense symptoms and need more medical care.”

It is unknown why youth with asthma are more likely than their peers to smoke or vape. However, reasons could include health inequities related to income, race and social influence by peers and family members who may also use these products, according to a news release.

In Minnesota, a higher percentage of teens with asthma reported that close friends smoke or vape (17.0 percent versus 10.1 percent) and that they live with someone who uses tobacco (46.9 percent versus 37.7 percent).