Awareness, Trial, and Current Use of Electronic Cigarettes in 10 Countries: Findings from the ITC Project

International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health

Shannon Gravely⁷  Geoffrey T. Fong⁷  K. Michael Cummings⁹  Mi Yan⁷  Anne C. K. Quah⁷  Ron Borland¹  Hua-Hie Yong¹  Sara C. Hitchman⁸  Ann McNeill⁸  David Hammond⁶  James F. Thrasher¹¹  Marc C. Willemsen¹⁰  Hong Gwan Seo²  Yuan Jiang⁵  Tania Cavalcante^3,7  Cristina Perez^3,7  Maizurah Omar^4,7  Karin Hummel¹⁰ 

[1] The Cancer Council Victoria, 615 St. Kilda Road, Melbourne, Victoria 3004, Australia; E-Mails:;National Cancer Center of Korea, 323 Ilsan-ro, Ilsandong-gu, Goyang-si Gyeonggi-do, 410-769, Korea; E-Mail:;National Cancer Institute of Brazil, Praca Cruz Vermelha, 23, Centro, 20230-130, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil; E-Mails:;University Sains Malaysia, Jalan Sungai Dua, 11800 Georgetown, Pulau Pinang, Malaysia; E-Mail:;China Center for Disease Control and Prevention, 155 Changbai Road Changping District, Beijing 102206, China; E-Mail:;School of Public Health and Health Systems, University of Waterloo, 200 University Avenue West, Waterloo, Ontario, N2L 3G1, Canada; E-Mail:;Department of Psychology, University of Waterloo, 200 University Avenue West, Waterloo, Ontario, N2L 3G1, Canada; E-Mails:;King’s College London, Strand, London, WC2R 2LS, UK; E-Mails:;Medical University of South Carolina, 171 Ashley Ave, Charleston, SC 29425, USA; E-Mail:;Maastricht University (CAPHRI), P. Debyeplein 1, 6229 HA Maastricht, the Netherlands; E-Mails:;Arnold School of Public Health, University of South Carolina, Colombia, SC 29208, USA; E-Mail:

关键词: e-cigarette;    electronic cigarette;    nicotine;    smoking;    international;   

DOI  :  10.3390/ijerph111111691

来源: mdpi

【 摘 要 】

Background: In recent years, electronic cigarettes (e-cigarettes) have generated considerable interest and debate on the implications for tobacco control and public health. Although the rapid growth of e-cigarettes is global, at present, little is known about awareness and use. This paper presents self-reported awareness, trial and current use of e-cigarettes in 10 countries surveyed between 2009 and 2013; for six of these countries, we present the first data on e-cigarettes from probability samples of adult smokers. Methods: A cross-sectional analysis of probability samples of adult (≥ 18 years) current and former smokers participating in the International Tobacco Control (ITC) surveys from 10 countries. Surveys were administered either via phone, face-to-face interviews, or the web. Survey questions included sociodemographic and smoking-related variables, and questions about e-cigarette awareness, trial and current use. Results: There was considerable cross-country variation by year of data collection and for awareness of e-cigarettes (Netherlands (2013: 88%), Republic of Korea (2010: 79%), United States (2010: 73%), Australia (2013: 66%), Malaysia (2011: 62%), United Kingdom (2010: 54%), Canada (2010: 40%), Brazil (2013: 35%), Mexico (2012: 34%), and China (2009: 31%)), in self-reports of ever having tried e-cigarettes (Australia, (20%), Malaysia (19%), Netherlands (18%), United States (15%), Republic of Korea (11%), United Kingdom (10%), Mexico (4%), Canada (4%), Brazil (3%), and China (2%)), and in current use (Malaysia (14%), Republic of Korea (7%), Australia (7%), United States (6%), United Kingdom (4%), Netherlands (3%), Canada (1%), and China (0.05%)). Conclusions: The cross-country variability in awareness, trial, and current use of e-cigarettes is likely due to a confluence of country-specific market factors, tobacco control policies and regulations (e.g., the legal status of e-cigarettes and nicotine), and the survey timing along the trajectory of e-cigarette awareness and trial/use in each country. These ITC results constitute an important snapshot of an early stage of what appears to be a rapid progression of global e-cigarette use.

【 授权许可】

CC BY   
© 2014 by the authors; licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland.