Association between Friends’ Use of Nicotine and Cannabis and Intake of both Substances among Adolescents

Rachel Herold, Rachel Boykan, Allison Eliscu, Héctor E. Alcalá and Maciej L. Goniewicz
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Rachel Herold: Department of Pediatrics, T 11-040, Renaissance School of Medicine at Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, NY 11794, USA
Rachel Boykan: Department of Pediatrics, T 11-040, Renaissance School of Medicine at Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, NY 11794, USA
Allison Eliscu: Department of Pediatrics, T 11-040, Renaissance School of Medicine at Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, NY 11794, USA
Héctor E. Alcalá: Department of Family, Population and Preventive Medicine, Renaissance School of Medicine at Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, NY 11794, USA
Maciej L. Goniewicz: Department of Health Behavior, Division of Cancer Prevention and Population Sciences, Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center, Elm and Carlton Streets, Buffalo, NY 14263, USA

IJERPH, 2021, vol. 18, issue 2, 1-5

Abstract: Nicotine and cannabis use are common among adolescents and may be associated with behavioral problems, poor academic outcomes and use disorders. The goals of this analysis were the following: (1) Describe the influence of friends’ nicotine and cannabis smoking and vaping on self-reported use. (2) Describe the relationship between friends’ nicotine and cannabis use on participants’ urinary biomarkers of nicotine (cotinine) and cannabis (11-nor-9-carboxy-Δ?tetrahydrocannabinol=THC-COOH). This is a secondary analysis of survey and biomarker data collected in adolescents aged 12–21 between April 2017 and April 2018, in Long Island, New York. Bivariate and multivariable analyses were conducted using SPSS 26. A cutoff value of ≥10 ng/mL was used to signify recent usage for urinary cotinine and THC-COOH levels. Over one-third of the 517 surveyed adolescents reported using tobacco and one-third reported using cannabis. A significant relationship between friends’ substance use and self-use was found. For both tobacco and cannabis, over 90% ( p < 0.01) of participants with urinary biomarker levels above cutoff had friends who used the respective substance. Friends’ nicotine and friends’ cannabis use were each independently associated with urinary biomarker levels for those substances (for nicotine, beta = 88.29, p = 0.03; for cannabis, beta = 163.58, p = 0.03). Friends’ use of nicotine and cannabis is associated with adolescents’ intake, as well as the physiological exposure to those substances. These findings underscore the importance of including peer influence in the discussion with adolescents about tobacco and cannabis use.

Keywords: tobacco; cannabis; marijuana; peer group; adolescent; biomarkers (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2021
References: View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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