KJC Korea
Journal Central

Background: New tobacco products (referring to e-cigarettes and any other new tobacco-related products) are being promoted by the tobacco companies’ marketing activities and various user-generated contents. Contents showing enticing factors of new tobacco products exist in various forms especially in social media, which is easily accessible to the public. Methods: This study is an exploratory content analysis that identifies enticing factors of new tobacco products in social media (YouTube), which has recently been used by the entire nation including children and adolescents. The analysis focused on the video uploader, characteristics and types of content, commercial components, and linguistic features of the message. Results: The results show that most of the videos (76.7%) were uploaded by individuals who are classified as tobacco enthusiasts. However, several contents (30.0%) that contain a purchase link of the tobacco product exist without recognizing any sponsorship. The possibility of the hidden advertisement of tobacco companies could be inferred from those cases. Moreover, the videos contain a lot of sensory appeals like “OO flavor/scent” and “Feeling fresh after smoking,” which are likely to strongly influence children and adolescents. Conclusion: Social media has provided many enticing contents of new tobacco products. Moreover, the contents, which are considered as advertising, were distributed among users without any regulation. Therefore, continuous and close monitoring of social media contents is required. In addition, practical policy implementation reflecting the social media environment should be considered.

Background: The relationship between the types of tobacco products and allergic diseases remains unclear. Hence, this study determined whether the current use of tobacco and combination of cigarettes, such as conventional cigarettes (CC), electronic cigarettes (EC), and heated tobacco products (HTP), among Korean adolescents affects the development of allergic diseases. Methods: This cross-sectional study analyzed the data from the 15th Korean Youth Risk Behavior survey. Participants included 55,748 adolescents at the age of 13-18 years. We performed a multivariable logistic regression analysis and calculated odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence interval (CI) of having allergic diseases. Results: Asthma, allergic rhinitis, and atopic dermatitis were reported by 1.5%, 20.0%, and 6.4% of the total participants, respectively. The rates of allergic diseases were the highest in EC and HTP users together. After adjusting for confounding variables, adolescents who used only HTP were associated with the highest risks of having asthma (OR, 6.80; 95% CI, 2.28-20.32) and atopic dermatitis (OR, 2.73; 95% CI, 1.11-6.76) compared with those who never used tobacco. Among adolescents who used EC and HTP together, the ORs of allergic rhinitis were the highest (OR, 1.79; 95% CI, 1.04-3.09). Conclusion: The association with increased allergic diseases was relevant in adolescents who smoked, especially those who used combustible cigarette alternatives. We should be vigilant of the use of HTP, CC, and EC, the hazards of which are already known among adolescents.

Background: Previous studies have reported the association between receiving allowance and smoking rate in adolescents and the possibility of adolescents to work part-time jobs for purchasing tobacco. Part-time jobs among adolescents are becoming more common, the types and purposes of which have recently changed. We tried to assess the association between part-time job experience and smoking tobacco in adolescents. Methods: We analyzed 62,276 subjects (49.2% girls) who participated in the 2017 Korea Youth Risk Behavior Survey. Frequency analysis, chi-square test, and logistic regression analysis were performed to understand the characteristics of variables, such as demographic and socioeconomic factors, and to analyze the association of part-time job experience with smoking tobacco as defined by ever-smokers. Results: A total of 8,150 participants (19.3% boys and 6.6% girls) were ever-smokers. Among the 8,404 who had part-time job experiences (13.9% boys and 13.1% girls), the number of ever-smokers was higher (50.7% boys and 23.9% girls) than in those without part-time job experiences (14.3% boys and 4.0% girls). In logistic regression analysis, the risk for persons with part-time job experience to have a lifetime smoking experience was significantly higher (odds ratio, 2.49; 95% confidence interval, 2.32-2.68) after adjusting for the demographic, socioeconomic, and smoking-related factors. Conclusion: Part-time job experience has a significant association with ever-smoking in Korean adolescents.

Background: The dual use of combustible and electronic cigarettes is gaining popularity among adolescents, but little is known about their dual use. This study aimed to evaluate the trend of changes in the prevalence of dual users and to investigate associated factors with the dual use. Methods: Using data from the 2016-2018 Korean Youth Risk Behavior Survey, the frequency of smoking, electronic cigarette use, and dual use was assessed among students aged between 13 and 18 years old. Using the date between 2016 and 2017, multivariate logistic regression analysis was conducted to evaluate associated factors related to the dual use among 7,781 current smokers. Results: The dual use of both combustible and e-cigarettes was increased from 2.94% in 2016 to 3.32% in 2018 although smoking prevalence was at a steady state in male students. The dual user proportion of male current smokers was changed from 30.4% in 2016 to 35.4% in 2018. Those who had experienced illegal drug use are more likely to be dual user of conventional tobacco and electronic cigarette than those who did not experienced illegal drug use (aOR 2.05, 95% CI 1.50-2.80 in male; aOR 5.03, 95% CI 1.50-2.80 in female). Smoking amount was an important associated factor of dual use among adolescents, while alcohol drinking and depressive mood were important factors of dual use in male adolescent only. Conclusion: The dual use of both conventional and electronic cigarettes has been an increasing prevalence among adolescents after 2016, with several important factors such as illegal drug use and smoking amount.

Background: Electronic cigarettes (ECs) were introduced in South Korea in 2008. ECs are devices that vaporize a solution that the user then inhales unlike combustible cigarettes (CCs) where tobacco leaves are burnt. Therefore, stealth use of ECs could be easier than stealth use of CCs since they produce less odor and smoke. This study aims to examine the use of ECs and factors associated with this trend. Methods: The online panel survey was conducted on 7,000 adults (males 2,300; females 4,700; age, 20-69 years) from November 3, 2018 to November 9, 2018. Females were oversampled given the very low prevalence of tobacco use among women in Korea. Furthermore, multivariate logistic regression analysis was conducted on stealth use of ECs, adjusted for sociodemographic variables and notion for using ECs in indoor public places. Results: In Korea, 83.5% of smokers experienced stealth use of ECs in areas where smoking was prohibited. The online survey shows that users of triple tobacco products including CCs, ECs, and heated tobacco products are more likely to have experienced stealth use than EC single users (OR 2.75, 95% CI 1.48-5.48). In addition, people who answered “Yes” to the question of whether ECs are allowed in the non-smoking area are more likely to have experienced the stealth use of ECs than those who answered “No” or “I don’t know” (OR 2.97, 95% CI 1.69-5.22). Conclusion: Stealth use is common among EC users, especially triple users and those who are not aware of the EC use are also prohibited in indoor public places.