For LGBTQ+ youth, vaping is becoming a dangerous coping mechanism

This story originally appeared on Them.

It’s long been known that the bullying LGBTQ+ people face in their youth can have lifelong health ramifications, but a new study is finding this type of social rejection may have a particularly impactful effect on vaping rates.

Previous research has shown that LGBTQ+ people tend to vape at disproportionately high rates compared to their straight and cisgender peers, with 22% of gay men and lesbians and 18% of bisexuals vaping, compared to 15% of straight people. But according to a new study published in the journal of Prevention Science, LGBTQ+ youth may exhibit high rates of e-cigarette and vape usage because of bullying from their peers.

The review, written by a group of public health researchers at George Mason University and Lehigh University, observed that LGBTQ+ youth face disproportionate rates of bullying, and are often alienated by their own families, leading to an undue amount of minority stress. “LGBTQ + individuals are often minorities within their biological families, and when family members fail to affirm their identity, the home environment becomes a major source of conflict and psychological distress,” the authors wrote.

Vaping, therefore, can become a coping mechanism that LGBTQ+ people turn to as a way to deal with stress and marginalization. Given the addictive nature of nicotine, the industry marketing tactics that target both youth and LGBTQ+ publications, the authors recommend specific preventative measures be taken to address the specific risk queer and trans youth face in regards to vaping and e-cigarette use.

The authors suggest that creating an affirming environment at home for LGBTQ+ youth can have a significant impact on minimizing their need for coping mechanisms such as vaping. The review also suggests that LGBTQ+ organizations and schools create youth-specific campaigns addressing the harmful effects of vaping, could discourage the behavior. Studies have shown that vaping is likely to cause lung and oral cancer.

Ultimately, the authors also say larger LGBTQ+ spaces such as Pride events should consider ways to create counter-marketing strategies for e-cigarettes and vapes.

“By identifying unique risk and protective factors for vaping among LGBTQ+ youth, and the mechanisms by which they increase risk, the findings will help the successful adaptation of evidence-based preventive interventions to reduce vaping in this vulnerable group,” senior researcher Kenneth Griffin said in a press release to U.S. News & World Report.

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