Experience and Prevalence of Iqos Heated Tobacco Product Among Adolescents in Taiwan
Author(s)
Chen PC1, Chang LC2, Hsu C2, Lee YC2
1University of Taipei, Taipei City, Taiwan, 2National Yang-Ming University, Taipei, Taiwan
Presentation Documents
OBJECTIVES: Heated tobacco products (HTPs), such as the “I-Quit-Ordinary-Smoking” (IQOS) heat-not-burn system, are openly sold in many countries. This study examined the extent to which IQOS products had penetrated the Taiwanese youth market by 2018. METHODS: Data were obtained from the cross-sectional Taiwan Global Youth Tobacco Survey 2018, which focuses on adolescents aged 12-18 years. The two dependent variables were the ever use and the current use of IQOS (within 30 days prior to survey completion). Independent variables included gender, school grade, monthly income/allowance, use of traditional cigarettes and e-cigarettes during the previous 30 days, educational level of parents, smoking status of parents and close friends, access to free cigarettes, contact with cigarette advertisements, and exposure to anti-tobacco courses. Logistic regression was used to identify factors correlating with the ever use and the current use of IQOS by adolescents. RESULTS: At the time of the survey, 4.17% of those surveyed had tried IQOS and 2.33% were currently using IQOS. The factors associated with an elevated likelihood of IQOS ever use were as follows: male sex (OR=1.29), current use of cigarettes (OR=3.40) or e-cigarettes (OR=1.98), close friends who smoke (OR=1.20), access to free cigarettes (OR=4.49), and participation in classes on the dangers of tobacco (OR=1.33). The factors associated with an elevated likelihood of current use of IQOS were as follows: male sex (OR=1.36), current use of cigarettes (OR=4.09) or e-cigarettes (OR=6.18), close friends who smoke (OR=2.38), and access to free cigarettes (OR=2.50). CONCLUSIONS: The factors associated with ever use and current use of IQOS were the same. HTPs are not sold legally in Taiwan. Despite the relatively low usage of IQOS in Taiwan, we recommended that the government accelerate the passage of regulations aimed at controlling the sale and marketing of HTPs.
Conference/Value in Health Info
2020-09, ISPOR Asia Pacific 2020, Seoul, South Korea
Value in Health Regional, Volume 22S (September 2020)
Code
PNS17
Topic
Epidemiology & Public Health
Topic Subcategory
Public Health
Disease
No Specific Disease