Indiana youth tobacco use plummeted to its lowest levels in decades, but flavored products and nicotine dependency in youth still pose serious concerns according to the 2024 Indiana Youth Tobacco Survey released last week.
Since 2000, the Indiana Department of Health has surveyed over 4,800 public middle and high school students every two years to monitor tobacco trends. The 2024 results show the lowest cigarette use in the past two decades — dropping from 31.6% in 2000 to less than a percent.
E-cigarette use among high school students has also fallen to 5%, the lowest rate since Indiana began data collection for e-cigarettes in 2012. Despite progress, e-cigarettes remain the most commonly used tobacco product among youth. Approximately 15,000 high school students and 5,000 middle school students said they currently use them…