Substance use and mental health are strongly associated with smoking and poor cessation outcomes, but not often examined in combination with menthol cigarette smoking. A recent study identified classes of Black and White menthol and non-menthol cigarette smokers based on demographics, alcohol, drug, and other tobacco use behaviors. A sample of 1,177 menthol and non-menthol cigarette smokers was classified based on demographic characteristics, heavy smoking, alcohol and drug use, desire to quit smoking, other tobacco product use, and use of psychotropic medication.
Findings:
· Three latent classes were identified that differentiated smokers on substance use, menthol cigarette smoking, and other tobacco use behavior.
· Class 1 consisted primarily of young adults who used a wide array of other tobacco products, reported the highest prevalence of other drug use, and showed the lowest desire to quit smoking cigarettes in the next 6-months.
· Class 2 comprised primarily of Black male menthol smokers, all of whom used cigarillos in addition to cigarettes, and who displayed moderate drug use.
· Class 3 was categorized as primarily older cigarette smokers, who engaged in very little other tobacco use or drug use, but who were most likely to self-report being prescribed psychotropic medication.
The authors concluded that the classification allowed for the identification of distinct groups of smokers based on factors related to poor cessation outcomes, including menthol use, that have not previously been examined in combination.
Source: Cohn et al. (2017). Determining non-cigarette tobacco, alcohol, and substance use typologies across menthol and non-menthol smokers using latent class analysis. Tobacco Induced Diseases, Jan 17;15:5. doi: 10.1186/s12971-017-0111-5.
Read the paper at https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5240208/
