Tobacco use among middle and high school students in the US has reached its lowest level in 25 years, according to the 2024 National Youth Tobacco Survey, though disparities persist.
RT’s Three Key Takeaways:
- Youth Tobacco Use Hits 25-Year Low: The 2024 National Youth Tobacco Survey shows a significant decline in tobacco use among middle and high school students, reaching the lowest levels in 25 years.
- E-Cigarette Decline Drives Progress: A notable reduction in e-cigarette use, from 2.13 million youth in 2023 to 1.63 million in 2024, contributed to the overall drop in tobacco product use.
- Disparities in Progress: While some groups, such as female and Hispanic students, saw declines in tobacco use, increases were observed among American Indian or Alaska Native students and White students using nicotine pouches.
Current tobacco product use among US middle and high school students has dropped to the lowest recorded level in 25 years, according to newly released data from the 2024 National Youth Tobacco Survey (NYTS).
Within the past year alone, at least half a million fewer students are using tobacco products, contributing to this progress.
In 2024, 2.25 million middle and high school students reported current use (use on one or more days during the past 30 days) of any tobacco product, compared to 2.80 million in 2023. This decline was largely attributable to the significant drop in the number of students who reported current e-cigarette use (2.13 million youth in 2023 compared to 1.63 million youth in 2024).
Within the past year, a significant decline also occurred in current hookah use (290,000 in 2023 compared to 190,000 in 2024). Cigarette smoking reached the lowest level ever recorded by the survey, with only 1.4% of students reporting current use in 2024.
“Reaching a 25-year low for youth tobacco product use is an extraordinary milestone for public health. However, with more than 2 million youth using tobacco products and certain groups not experiencing declines in use, our mission is far from complete,” says Deirdre Lawrence Kittner, PhD, MPH, director of Center for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) Office on Smoking and Health, in a release. “We must remain committed to public health efforts to ensure all youth can live healthy, tobacco-free lives.”
The CDC and the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) analyzed NYTS data to assess the use of nine tobacco products among US middle school (grades 6–8) and high school (grades 9–12) students.
Types of Tobacco Product Use
Detailed information on the use of e-cigarettes and nicotine pouches from the 2024 NYTS was recently published. The newly released data provides further information from the survey, including findings on other types of tobacco product use and detailed breakdowns of tobacco product use by school level, sex, and race and ethnicity.
Youth e-cigarette use declined to the lowest level in a decade; however, for the 11th year in a row, e-cigarettes remained the most commonly used tobacco product (5.9%) among youth who reported current tobacco product use.
In 2024, nicotine pouches became the second most commonly used tobacco product among youth (1.8%), followed by cigarettes (1.4%), cigars (1.2%), smokeless tobacco (1.2%), other oral nicotine products (1.2%), heated tobacco products (0.8%), hookahs (0.7%) and pipe tobacco (0.5%).
Varying Progress Across Population Groups
The report also found varying progress across population groups. For example, during 2023-2024, current use of any tobacco product, e-cigarettes and multiple tobacco products all significantly declined among female students, and current use of any tobacco product, e-cigarettes, cigars, hookahs, and multiple tobacco products declined among Hispanic students.
In contrast, during 2023-2024, current use of any tobacco product, e-cigarettes, oral nicotine products, any combustible tobacco product, and multiple tobacco products all increased among American Indian or Alaska Native students, and current use of nicotine pouches increased among White students.
No significant changes occurred in current use of cigarettes, smokeless tobacco, heated tobacco products and pipe tobacco for all assessed race and ethnicity groups.
“We’re headed in the right direction when it comes to reducing tobacco product use among our nation’s youth,” says Brian King, PhD, MPH, director of the FDA’s Center for Tobacco Products, in a release. “But we can’t take our foot off the gas. Continued vigilance is needed to continue to reduce all forms of tobacco product use among youth. Addressing disparities remains an essential part of these efforts to ensure that we don’t leave anyone behind.”
What’s Leading to the Decline?
The observed decline in tobacco product use is likely the result of multiple factors, including the implementation of evidence-based strategies at the national, state, and local levels, according to a news release from the FDA.
Evidence-based tobacco prevention strategies include price increases, mass media campaigns to educate youth about the harmful effects of all tobacco products, and smoke-free policies that include e-cigarettes. The FDA also continues to regulate the tobacco product marketplace by conducting thorough premarket review and using the full scope of its compliance and enforcement tools across the supply chain, including manufacturers, importers, distributors, and retailers.
The FDA notes that use of tobacco products in any form is unsafe, and nearly all tobacco product use begins during adolescence. “Given the negative health consequences of tobacco use and the unique harms associated with adolescent nicotine exposure, preventing youth tobacco product use is imperative,” according to the release from the FDA. “Efforts aimed at reducing youth tobacco product use and related disparities are also a critical part of tobacco prevention and control efforts.”
