Prohibition of e-cigarettes in the US: Are prohibitions where alcohol is consumed related to lower alcohol consumption?

• Published in: Journal of public health policy Vol. 37; no. 4; pp. 483 - 499
• Main Authors: Hershberger, Alexandra R., Karyadi, Kenny A., Cyders, Melissa A.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: London Palgrave Macmillan 01.12.2016; Palgrave Macmillan UK
• Subjects: Alcohol abuse; Alcohol drinking; Alcohol related disorders; Alcohol use; Alcoholic beverages; Alcoholism; Alcohols; Bans; Cigarette smoking; Cigarettes; Consumption; Drinking behavior; Drinks; Electronic cigarettes; Equality and Human Rights; Ethnicity; Health policy; Legislation; Medical Sociology; Original Article; Private life; Prohibition; Public Health; Risk; Smoking; Social Justice; Social Policy; Social Sciences; Sociology; Tobacco; Vaping; United States > US; tobacco; e-cigarettes; alcohol consumption; prohibitions
• ISSN: 0197-5897; 1745-655X
• DOI: 10.1057/s41271-016-0033-0

Recently, research has suggested negative consequences related to electronic cigarette (e-cig) use, including the increased risk for alcohol use and abuse. Previous work found that cigarette smoking ban legislation lowered overall smoking and alcohol use rates; however, researchers have not yet examined the potential effects of prohibiting e-cig use. The present study surveyed 617 individuals from a community-based online sample in the US (mean age = 33.33, SD = 10.50, 54.7 per cent female) who reported their smoking/e-cig use status, alcohol consumption, and the presence of e-cig prohibitions where they consume alcohol. E-cig prohibition was associated with a lower likelihood of being an e-cig user (OR = 0.12, p < 0.001) or dual user (use both cigarettes and e-cigs) (OR = 0.07, p < 0.001). Alcohol Use Disorder Identification Test scores (b = —1.92, p < 0.001), total drinks consumed over 14 days (b = —4.58, p = 0.002), and average drinks per drinking day (b = —0.71, p < 0.001) were all lower when e-cigs were prohibited. Findings are an initial step in this line of research and suggest important future work examining implications of e-cig prohibition recommendations and policy.