Deborah Carvalho Malta, Mariana Gonçalves de Freitas, Marco Antonio Ratzsch de Andreazzi, Juliana Bottoni de Souza, Leticia de Oliveira Cardoso
The increase in electronic cigarette use among students highlights the need to maintain their prohibition, expand educational actions, and strengthen surveillance and enforcement measures.
OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to estimate the prevalence of indicators related to experimentation and use of tobacco products among Brazilian students aged 13-17 years in 2024 and to compare them with values observed in 2015 and 2019 in the country.
METHODS: A cross-sectional study was conducted, with prevalence estimates according to sociodemographic variables and temporal analysis of the indicators.
RESULTS: An increase was observed in lifetime experimentation (from 16.8 to 29.6%) and electronic cigarette use in the past 30 days (from 2.8 to 8.7%). Conversely, a reduction was observed in cigarette, hookah, and overall tobacco product use in the past 30 days.
CONCLUSION: The increase in electronic cigarette use among students highlights the need to maintain their prohibition, expand educational actions, and strengthen surveillance and enforcement measures.