Press Releases

Youth E-Cigarette Rate in Minnesota Jumps Again

Student Survey Strengthens Call for Restrictions, Investments to Combat Youth Tobacco Use

ST PAUL (10/2/19) – Today Governor Tim Walz released alarming data from the 2019 Minnesota Student Survey showing another jump in youth e-cigarette use. The survey found one in four 11^th-graders had used an e-cigarette in the past month, and the rate of e-cigarette use nearly doubled among 8^th-graders from 2016 to 2019. While the survey also found youth cigarette smoking is at historic lows, officials and advocates expressed concern that the youth e-cigarette epidemic is eroding decades of progress to reduce youth tobacco use.

Minnesotans for a Smoke-Free Generation, a coalition of more than 60 organizations that share a common goal of reducing youth smoking and ending tobacco’s harm for good, called on lawmakers to take aggressive, comprehensive steps to address this growing epidemic. The coalition supports a statewide Tobacco 21 policy, flavored tobacco restrictions, investments in tobacco prevention and education efforts, and increased tobacco prices.

“This year’s student survey is an appalling snapshot of the youth nicotine epidemic which is affecting schools and communities all across our state,” said Molly Moilanen, Vice President at ClearWay Minnesota^SM and Co-Chair of Minnesotans for a Smoke-Free Generation. “Several other states have taken decisive actions to keep e-cigarettes away from kids, and Minnesota youth deserve a chance to grow up free from addiction. Statewide Tobacco 21, prohibiting flavored products and investing in prevention strategies are important steps forward. We urge the Governor and lawmakers to work quickly to pass bold solutions to this increasingly grave health crisis.”

Tobacco 21 is a national movement that helps keep tobacco products out of schools, since the vast majority of high-school students are 18 or younger. The Student Survey found that 72 percent of 11^th-grade students said they got products from friends. Since nearly 95 percent of adult smokers started before 21, raising the age also deters initiation and can prevent a lifetime of addiction. Minnesota now has 46 cities and counties that have raised their tobacco sale age to 21, and many more are actively considering it.

“Raising the tobacco age to 21 will stop the start of tobacco use and vaping,” said Senator Carla Nelson (R-Rochester), lead author of the Senate’s Tobacco 21 bill. “I urge my legislative colleagues from all corners of Minnesota to act quickly to raise the age statewide to prevent youth smoking and combat the e-cigarette epidemic. Our kids cannot wait.”

The recent huge increases in e-cigarette use follow years of predatory youth-focused marketing campaigns from JUUL and other companies. Internal documents revealed JUUL used Big Tobacco tactics, including a sophisticated marketing program that included social media influencers, and summer camp and school programs that targeted kids as young as eight. The marketing has worked in that most Minnesota youth do not perceive that e-cigarettes are harmful. The survey found 76 percent of Minnesota 11^th-graders said there is “no, slight, or a moderate risk to using e-cigarettes.”

“E-cigarette companies are the same old wolf, in different sheep’s clothing,” said Representative Laurie Halverson (DFL-Eagan), a longtime champion of tobacco prevention policies. “As a mom, I hear from concerned parents that stealthy e-cigarettes that come in flavors like gummy bear and ‘unicorn drops’ are luring their kids into addiction. Minnesota is behind the curve on addressing e-cigarettes’ risk to our teens and I’ll be pushing for comprehensive policies to protect our kids.”

Nicotine harms the adolescent brain and may prime young brains for addiction to cigarettes and other substances. Popular e-cigarettes like JUUL have high levels of nicotine. Each JUUL pod contains at least as much nicotine as a pack of cigarettes. Teen nicotine use is concerning because it puts Minnesota’s youth at risk for health problems and lifetime addiction. Vaping-related hospitalizations in Minnesota and across the nation are another wake-up call that action is needed to protect teens from harmful e-cigarettes.

Kid-friendly flavors are a major reason for the rise in tobacco use. A recent national survey found that 70 percent of youth who use e-cigarettes do so specifically because of flavors. President Trump recently asked the FDA to remove flavored e-cigarettes from the marketplace, which is a welcome and long-overdue step. Advocates have urged the FDA to follow through on that promise and encourage lawmakers to go a step further to address all flavored tobacco products.

“The tobacco industry has blatantly targeted African Americans, youth and LGBTQ people with menthol tobacco products and insidious marketing,” said Senator Jeff Hayden (DFL-Minneapolis), who authored a 2015 bill to study the effects of menthol tobacco products in Minnesota. “I look forward to working with my colleagues to find a path to address all flavored tobacco products. We can no longer sit by while our communities of color and LGBTQ people suffer and die from smoking-related diseases.”

Minnesotans for a Smoke-Free Generation urges a comprehensive approach to counter the youth nicotine epidemic and Big Tobacco’s aggressive marketing. Since the Minnesota Legislature adjourned in May, coalition members have worked with communities across Minnesota to pass local tobacco prevention policies including Tobacco 21, flavored tobacco restrictions and commonsense price and licensing policies.

More info: Tobacco 21 fact sheet, E-cigarette fact sheet, Flavored tobacco fact sheet, Funding fact sheet

Key Facts:

• Nicotine is addictive and can harm the adolescent brain. Source: U.S. Surgeon General
• More than $100 million/year: how much the tobacco industry spends every year marketing and advertising their products in Minnesota. Source:Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids
• Nearly 95 percent: of addicted adult smokers started before age 21. Source: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (Results from the 2010 National Survey on Drug Use and Health).
• 25 percent: estimated reduction in smoking among 15-to-17-year-olds, if tobacco age is raised to 21. Source: National Academy of Medicine

Findings from the 2019 Minnesota Student Survey:

• Percent of students who vaped e-cigarettes in past 30 days
  • Grade 8: 11 percent (95 percent increase from 2016-2019)
  • Grade 9: 16 percent (75 percent increase from 2016-2019)
  • Grade 11: 26 percent (54 percent increase from 2016-2019)
• Students aren’t aware of e-cigarette dangers
  • 76 percent of 11^th graders said there is either no, slight or a moderate risk to using e-cigarettes

• Most students got e-cigarettes from their friends
  • Got e-cigarettes from friends:
    • Grade 8: 71 percent
    • Grade 9: 76 percent
    • Grade 11: 72 percent
  • Bought e-cigarettes from vape shop:
    • Grade 8: 5 percent
    • Grade 9: 7 percent
    • Grade 11: 14 percent
  • Bought e-cigarettes on the internet:
    • Grade 8: 8 percent
    • Grade 9: 8 percent
    • Grade 11: 10 percent

• Combustible cigarette use falls to lowest levels ever recorded
  • Grade 8: 2.4 percent
  • Grade 9: 3 percent
  • Grade 11: 5 percent

About Minnesotans for a Smoke-Free Generation

Minnesotans for a Smoke-Free Generation is a coalition of more than 60 organizations that share a common goal of saving Minnesota youth from a lifetime of addiction to tobacco. The coalition supports policies that reduce youth smoking and nicotine addiction, including increasing tobacco prices, raising the tobacco sale age to 21, limiting access to candy-, fruit- and menthol-flavored tobacco, and funding tobacco prevention and cessation programs.

Partners include: A Breath of Hope Lung Foundation, A Healthier Southwest, African American Leadership Forum, Allina Health, American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network, American Heart Association, American Lung Association in Minnesota, Apple Tree Dental, Association for Nonsmokers – Minnesota, Aurora/St. Anthony Neighborhood Corporation, Becker County Energize, Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Minnesota, Cancer Legal Care, CentraCare Health, Children’s Defense Fund-Minnesota, Children’s Hospitals and Clinics of Minnesota, ClearWay Minnesota^SM,  Comunidades Latinas Unidas En Servicio – CLUES, Dodge County Public Health, Essentia Health, Gillette Children’s Specialty Healthcare, HealthEast, HealthPartners, Hennepin Healthcare, Hope Dental Clinic, Horizon Public Health, Indigenous Peoples Task Force, ISAIAH, JustUs Health, LAAMPP Alumni, Lake Region Healthcare, Lincoln Park Children and Families Collaborative, Local Public Health Association of Minnesota, March of Dimes, Mayo Clinic, Medica, Meeker McLeod Sibley Community Health Services, Minnesota Academy of Family Physicians, Minnesota Cancer Alliance, Minnesota Council of Health Plans, Minnesota Hospital Association, Minnesota Medical Association, Minnesota Nurses Association, Minnesota Oral Health Coalition, Minnesota Public Health Association, MN Association of Community Health Centers, MN Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics, Model Cities of St. Paul, Inc., NAMI Minnesota, North Memorial Health Care, NorthPoint Health and Wellness Center, Olmsted Medical Center, PartnerSHIP 4 Health, Perham Health, Preventing Tobacco Addiction Foundation, SEIU Healthcare Minnesota, Shift MN, St. Paul Area Chamber of Commerce, Steele County Public Health, Tobacco Free Alliance, Twin Cities Medical Society, UCare, Vision In Living Life “Change is Possible”,  WellShare International and Zumbro Valley Medical Society. Find out more at: smokefreegenmn.org.