Vaping Behavior and Intention to Quit among Undergraduate Students in a Hispanic-Serving University.

The surge in electronic nicotine delivery systems (ENDS) usage, particularly among young adults, poses significant public health concerns. This study aimed to identify predictors of e-cigarette use, quit attempts, and frequency among undergraduate students in a Hispanic-serving university in Texas. A cross-sectional study was conducted between August 1 and October 26, 2023, recruiting undergraduate students through the Sona system, an online experiment management platform. Participants completed an online survey that covered demographics, educational status, vaping status, initiation age, reasons for first and current e-cigarette use, frequency of past usage, intentions to quit, and quit attempt frequency. Statistical analysis included descriptive statistics, multinomial logistic regression, and multivariable linear regression. Among 316 participants, 33.9% reported current e-cigarette use. Junior and senior students, as well as prior tobacco users, were more likely to be current vapers. Prior vaping experience was more prevalent among Hispanic individuals and those with a history of tobacco use. Notably, 74.3% of current users attempted to quit in the past year, with a higher frequency of quit attempts among females, Hispanic students, and those with vaping acquaintances. However, the vaping behavior and quit attempt patterns were similar across other categories. This study highlights how various factors influence e-cigarette use among college students. It suggests that prevention and quitting programs should consider the specific needs of different groups. Future studies will continue to look at different student groups to find the most effective ways to help them quit vaping.

Attitudes, Behaviors, and Perceptions of Students Vaping in Three Mexican Universities.

The increase in the popularity and use of electronic cigarettes (e-cigarettes) has consistently risen worldwide and has become associated with adverse health outcomes. This study has identified the attitudes and perceptions of undergraduate students who vape in three universities in Mexico. A cross-sectional study involving 495 participants was conducted using a survey from October to December 2023. Three universities in different states in Mexico collaborated with colleges in Yucatan, Durango, and Nuevo Leon, Mexico. Descriptive statistics include frequencies and percentages, and four logistic regression models were employed. In the sample, 31% and 17.54% of participants reported smoking and vaping, respectively. Students who reported vaping in the last month reported that their first experience with vaping was at an average of 17.3 years of age, and of those, 71.26% (n = 62) reported having vaped for over 100 days, while the remaining 38% reported vaping for between 2 and 100 days. Students from Veracruz and Yucatan began vaping at a younger age than in the central and northern regions. There is a need to educate students about the dangers of the chemicals in the liquids they use, the secondary exposure vapers, and the health dangers they pose.

Association between e-cigarette use and asthma among US adolescents: Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System 2015-2019.

BACKGROUND: Previous studies have suggested that e-cigarette use, which has increased rapidly among US adolescents, may cause respiratory distress. This cross-sectional study aimed to investigate the factors associated with e-cigarette use and the relationship between e-cigarette use and asthma among US adolescents. METHODS: Data from the Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System between 2015 and 2019 were analyzed, and multivariable logistic regression was used to identify demographic and behavioral factors associated with e-cigarette use. Stratified analyses were conducted to assess the relationship between e-cigarette use and asthma among adolescents by previous combustible product use. RESULTS: This study found that Hispanic adolescents had lower odds of e-cigarette use than White adolescents in Texas, with factors such as age, substance use, and depression being associated with use. In the US, male gender, previous combustible and substance use, and depression were associated with higher odds of ever using e-cigarettes, while current use was associated with several factors including age and White race. E-cigarette use was significantly associated with asthma among adolescents who have never used combustible products in both Texas and the entire US after adjusting for covariates (OR 1.32, 95% CI 1.06-1.66 and OR 1.18, 95% CI 1.02-1.37, respectively). CONCLUSION: The findings from this study can be used to inform public health strategies and policies aimed at reducing e-cigarette use and its associated health risks among adolescents.

The contribution of secondhand tobacco smoke to blood lead levels in US children and adolescents: a cross-sectional analysis of NHANES 2015-2018.

BACKGROUND: Lead is a major developmental neurotoxicant in children, and tobacco smoke has been suggested as a source of lead exposure in vulnerable populations. This study evaluates the contribution of secondhand tobacco smoke (SHS) to blood lead levels (BLLs) in children and adolescents. METHODS: We analyze data from 2,815 participants aged 6-19 years who participated in the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (2015-2018) to investigate the association between serum cotinine levels and BLLs. A multivariate linear regression was conducted to estimate geometric means (GMs) and the ratios of GMs after adjusting for all covariates. RESULTS: The geometric means of BLLs in study participants aged 6 - 19 years were 0.46 µg/dl (95% CI 0.44, 0.49). After adjusting for relevant participant characteristics, the geometric means of BLLs were 18% (BLL 0.48 µg/dl, 95% CI 0.45, 0.51) and 29% (BLL 0.52 µg/dl, 95% CI 0.46, 0.59) higher in participants who had intermediate serum cotinine levels (0.03 - 3 ng/mL) and those who had high serum cotinine levels (> 3 ng/mL) respectively, compared to participants who had low serum cotinine levels (BLL 0.41 µg/dl, 95% CI 0.38, 0.43). CONCLUSIONS: SHS exposure may be a source of BLLs in US children and adolescents. Efforts to reduce lead exposure in children and adolescents should include strategies to reduce SHS exposure.

Maternal mortality during the COVID-19 pandemic in Mexico: a preliminary analysis during the first year.

BACKGROUND: In Mexico, the COVID-19 pandemic led to preventative measures such as confinement and social interaction limitations that paradoxically may have aggravated healthcare access disparities for pregnant women and accentuated health system weaknesses addressing high-risk patients' pregnancies. Our objective is to estimate the maternal mortality ratio in 1 year and analyze the clinical course of pregnant women hospitalized due to acute respiratory distress syndrome and COVID-19. METHODS: A retrospective surveillance study of the national maternal mortality was performed from February 2020-February 2021 in Mexico related to COVID-19 cases in pregnant women, including their outcomes. Comparisons were made between patients who died and those who survived to identify prognostic factors and underlying health conditions distribution. RESULTS: Maternal Mortality Ratio increased by 56.8% in the studied period, confirmed COVID-19 was the cause of 22.93% of cases. Additionally, unconfirmed cases represented 4.5% of all maternal deaths. Among hospitalized pregnant women with Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome consistent with COVID-19, smoking and cardiovascular diseases were more common among patients who faced a fatal outcome. They were also more common in the age group of < 19 or > 38. In addition, pneumonia was associated with asthma and immune impairment, while diabetes and increased BMI increased the odds for death (Odds Ratio 2.30 and 1.70, respectively). CONCLUSIONS: Maternal Mortality Ratio in Mexico increased over 60% in 1 year during the pandemic; COVID-19 was linked to 25.4% of maternal deaths in the studied period. Lethality among pregnant women with a diagnosis of COVID-19 was 2.8%, and while asthma and immune impairment increased propensity for developing pneumonia, obesity and diabetes increased the odds for in-hospital death. Measures are needed to improve access to coordinated well-organized healthcare to reduce maternal deaths related to COVID-19 and pandemic collateral effects.

Association between life-style behaviors and health outcomes in Adventist and non-Adventist adolescents in Mexico: a pilot study.

BACKGROUND: Identifying lifestyle-related health predictors affecting adolescent behaviors is a matter of interest and study for diverse audiences, including the religious sphere. The Adventist religion recommends their followers to adopt a healthy diet, adequate rest, physical activity, sufficient water intake, and non-use of addictive substances such as alcohol, tobacco, and drugs, as well as fostering faith and hope to give meaning to life. METHODS: A cross-sectional and observational study was conducted among adolescent students aged 13 to 19 years old in Montemorelos City, Nuevo León, Northern Mexico, between September 14, 2017 and February 13, 2018. This study included 363 Mexican adolescents, consisting of 202 Adventists and 161 non-Adventists. The binomial logistic regression analysis was performed to examine the relationships between religious affiliation and life-style behaviors and evaluate the effect of life-style behaviors on health outcomes by religious affiliation. Age, gender, type of residence, and place of birth were controlled. RESULTS: We found that Adventist adolescents were more likely to be watching TV for 2 h or less per day (p < 0.001), have enough sleeping time for 7 h or more (p < 0.001), go to bed early at 11 o'clock or before (p < 0.001), and have breakfast (p = 0.006) than non-Adventist adolescents significantly. It indicates that Adventist students are more likely to have healthier life-style behaviors than non-Adventist students. The multiple binomial regression models showed that in the group of Adventist adolescents sporting activity and hours watching TV were significantly associated with obesity risk (p = 0.001) and risky eating patterns (p = 0.044), respectively, controlling for age, gender, type of residence, and place of birth. No relationship was found between life-style behaviors and health outcomes in non-Adventist adolescents. CONCLUSIONS: Religious affiliation could serve as a predictor of healthy behaviors among adolescents. This study concluded that Adventist adolescents are more likely to have a healthier lifestyle behavior than non-Adventist adolescents and various health-related behaviors were specifically identified among Adventist participants.

High-mobility group box 1 at the time of parturition in women with gestational diabetes mellitus.

PROBLEM: High-mobility group box 1 (HMGB1), a danger-associated molecular pattern marker, may indicate sterile inflammation through innate immune pathways. HMGB1 is implicated in hyperglycemia and excess glucose in trophoblast. Metabolic dysfunction and dyslipidemia are associated with gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM), but few studies examined associations between HMGB1 and GDM. We determined HMGB1 levels, and the ratio of HMGB1 to innate immune markers, in women with GDM at parturition. METHOD OF STUDY: This case-control study of 50 GDM pregnancies and 100 healthy controls utilized data and plasma samples from PeriBank. HMGB1, pentraxin-3, and interleukin (IL)-6 were measured by ELISA. Logistic regression calculated odds ratios (OR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) adjusting for age, pre-pregnancy body mass index, and type of labor. RESULTS: There were no significant associations between HMGB1 and GDM. The ratio of HMGB1 to pentraxin-3 and IL-6 did not alter the odds of GDM. There was a significant statistical interaction between HMGB1 and maternal age (P = .02). When associations were examined by age groups, HMGB1 was associated with reduced odds of HMGB1 among women ≤25 (AOR = 0.007 CI 95% <0.001-0.3). Odds ratios increased as age increased (AOR range 1.2-3.8) but results were not statistically significant. CONCLUSION: High-mobility group box 1 was not associated with GDM. However, we found evidence that maternal age was a potential effect modifier of the relationship between HMGB1 and GDM. As there is growing evidence that HMGB1 may play important roles in reproduction, future studies should explore maternal factors that may alter HMGB1 levels.

A systematic assessment of carcinogenicity of chemicals in hydraulic-fracturing fluids and flowback water.

BACKGROUND: Thousands of chemicals exist in hydraulic-fracturing (HF) fluids and wastewater from unconventional oil gas development. The carcinogenicity of these chemicals in HF fluids and wastewater has never been systematically evaluated. OBJECTIVES: In this study, we assessed the carcinogenicity of 1,173 HF-related chemicals in the HF chemical data from the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). METHODS: We linked the HF chemical data with the agent classification data from the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) at the World Health Organization (WHO) (N = 998 chemicals) to evaluate human carcinogenic risk of the chemicals and with the Carcinogenic Potency Database (CPDB) from Toxnet (N = 1,534 chemicals) to evaluate potential carcinogenicity of the chemicals. RESULTS: The Chemical Abstract Service Registry Numbers (CASRNs) for chemicals were used for data linkage. Among 1,173 chemicals, 1,039 were identified only in HF fluids, 97 only in wastewater, and 37 in both. Compared with IARC, we found information of 104 chemicals, and 48 of them may have potentially carcinogenic risk to human, among which 14 are definitely carcinogenic, 7 probably carcinogenic, and 27 possibly carcinogenic. Using the CPDB data, it suggests that 66 chemicals are potentially carcinogenic based on rats and mouse models. CONCLUSIONS: Conclusions Our evaluation suggests that exposure to some chemicals in HF fluids and wastewater may increase cancer risk, and the identified chemicals could be selected as the priority list for drinking water exposure assessment or cancer-related health studies.

Maternal exposure to PM2.5 in south Texas, a pilot study.

In this study, we characterized personal exposure to fine particulate matter (PM2.5), black carbon (BC), and nicotine in pregnant women in Hidalgo County, where the hospitalization rates of childhood asthma are the highest in the state of Texas. The measurements were conducted over three non-consecutive sampling days for 17 participants in their third trimester. Measurements were partitioned into four microenvironments, i.e., Residential, Vehicular, Commercial, and Other, on the basis of GPS coordinates and temperature and humidity measurements. The daily average PM2.5 mass concentration was 24.2 (standard deviation=22.0) µg/m3, with the highest daily mass concentration reaching 126.0µg/m3. The daily average BC concentration was 1.44 (SD=0.82) µg/m3, ranging from 0.5 to 5.4µg/m3. Hair nicotine concentrations were all near the detection level (i.e., 49.2pg/mg), indicating that the participants were not routinely exposed to tobacco smoke. The Residential microenvironment contributed dominantly to the mass concentration since the participants chiefly remained at home and cooking activities contributed significantly to the total PM2.5. When compared to an ambient monitoring station, the person-specific PM2.5 was frequently more than double the ambient measurement (10.4µg/m3 overall), revealing that even in regions where ambient concentrations are below national standards, individuals may be still be exposed to elevated PM2.5 mass concentrations.

Decreasing trend in passive tobacco smoke exposure and association with asthma in U.S. children.

In this study, we assessed trends of serum cotinine levels over time among US children ages 3-11 years and compared the risk of asthma in groups exposed to passive tobacco smoke. We utilized National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) data collected from 2003 to 2014 (n = 8064). Serum cotinine level, household smoker status, asthma status, and sociodemographic information were extracted for multiple regression analyses. The adjusted biannual change in log (cotinine) in comparison to earlier NHANES survey cycles was - 0.196 (p < 0.001) overall, - 0.055 (p = 0.089) among children with household smoker(s), and - 0.129 (p < 0.001) among children without. The proportion of children living with household smokers decreased from 24.9% in the 2003-2004 cycle to 11.4% in the 2013-2014 cycle. The adjusted odds ratios (ORs) for asthma were 1.34 (95% confidence interval (CI): 1.00-1.80; 2nd tertile vs 1st tertile) and 1.69 (95%CI: 1.25-2.29; 3rd tertile vs1st tertile), respectively. Highly exposed asthmatic children, in the 3rd cotinine tertile (>0.13 ng/mL), were primarily Non-Hispanic Black (61.0%) and whose family incomes were below poverty guidelines. Overall results reveal passive smoke exposure level among children ages 3-11 in the US decreased over the study period. Nevertheless, higher exposure to passive smoke is still associated with higher odds of childhood asthma. Targeted smoking cessation interventions in clinical practices are needed to reduce tobacco smoke exposure and related asthma risk in children, particularly in low-income and minority groups.

A population-based study of smoking, serum cotinine and exhaled nitric oxide among asthmatics and a healthy population in the USA.

BACKGROUND: Fractional concentration of exhaled nitric oxide (FeNO) is recommended by the American Thoracic Society (ATS) as a noninvasive biomarker of airway inflammation. In addition to inflammation, many factors may be associated with FeNO, particularly tobacco exposure; however, only age has been included as an influential factor for children below 12 years. Numerous studies have demonstrated negative associations between tobacco exposure and FeNO levels with self-reported data, but few with an objective assessment of smoking. METHODS: Data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) 2007-2012 were analyzed to examine the association between FeNO and active/passive tobacco. Exposure was assessed by both self-report and serum cotinine levels among 11,160 subjects aged 6-79 years old with asthma, or without any respiratory disease. RESULTS: Study results indicated 28.8% lower FeNO, 95% CI [25.2%, 32.3%] and 38.1% lower FeNO, 95% CI: [28.1, 46.2] was observed among healthy and asthmatic participants with serum cotinine in the highest quartile compared to those in the lowest quartile, respectively. Self-reported smoking status and recent tobacco use were also associated with decreased FeNO. Self-reported passive smoking was significantly associated with a 1.0% decrease in FeNO 95% CI [0.0, 2.0] among asthmatic subjects but not among healthy subjects. CONCLUSIONS: Active smoking, whether measured by self-report or serum cotinine, was associated with decreased FeNO levels. In addition to age, increased attention should be given to tobacco exposure when using FeNO as a biomarker in clinical practice. Additional research is needed to establish reference value of FeNO considering the impact of tobacco exposure.