As vaping’s popularity endures, a report issued by the surgeon general’s office Tuesday shows that LGBTQ Americans are among those helping to keep smoke shops in business. The surgeon general’s 837-page report on tobacco use found that 37.8% of gay, lesbian and bisexual U.
S. adults have tried electronic cigarettes, compared with just 16.5% of their straight counterparts.
Electronic cigarettes, also known as e-cigarettes, include e-cigars, e-pipes, e-hookahs, vaping pens and hookah pens. When broken down further, the data, collected from 2019 to 2021, found nearly half of bisexual adults have tried e-cigarettes, compared with 31.8% of gay men and 26.
7% of lesbians. The authors noted that figures on transgender Americans’ tobacco use were not widely available for analysis in all areas of the report. The report found similar disparities exist among the nation’s youths and young adults: Over 42% of young adults and 56% of high school students who identify as gay, lesbian or bisexual reported trying e-cigarettes, compared with 30.
3% and 49.8% of their straight counterparts. “Tobacco use is a singular health threat to LGBTQAI+ communities,” said Kristy Marynak, a senior science adviser at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and a co-editor of the report.
“This report finds that nearly 1 in 5 of all deaths in the United States are caused by tobacco, and it shines a light on the disproportionate burden borne by certain communities, including LGBTQAI+ commun.
