Depression screening outcomes among adolescents, young adults, and adults reporting past 30-day tobacco and cannabis use

Abstract

BackgroundFew studies examine the relationship between depression and use of specific tobacco and/or cannabis products among adolescents, young adults, and adults. We determined whether the odds of depression are greater among those who used specific tobacco and/or cannabis products and among co-users of tobacco and cannabis. MethodCross-sectional online survey of a national convenience sample of 13–40-year-olds (N = 6,038). The survey included depression screening and past 30-day use of specific tobacco and cannabis products (cigarettes; e-cigarettes, vaped cannabis, little cigars, cigarillos, cigars, hookah, chewing tobacco, smoked cannabis, edible cannabis, blunts). Analyses correspond to the total sample, and 13–17-, 18–24-, and 25–40-year-olds. ResultsAmong 5,281 individuals who responded to the depression screener and nine product use questions, 1,803 (34.1 %) reported co-use of at least one tobacco product and one cannabis product in the past 30 days. Past 30-day co-use was associated with higher likelihood of screening positive for depression compared to past 30-day use of tobacco-only (aOR = 1.32, 1.06–1.65; 0.006) or cannabis-only (aOR = 1.94, 1.28–2.94; <0.001). Screening positive for depression was more likely among those who reported past 30-day use of e-cigarettes (aOR = 1.56; 1.35–1.80; <0.001), cigarettes (aOR = 1.24, 1.04–1.48; 0.016), chewed tobacco (aOR = 1.91, 1.51–2.42; <0.001), and blunts (aOR = 1.22, 1.00–1.48; 0.053) compared to those who did not report past 30-day use of these products. Among the 2,223 individuals who screened positive for depression, the most used two-product combination was nicotine e-cigarettes and smoked cannabis (614 individuals, 27.6 %). ConclusionsScreening positive for depression was more likely among past 30-day co-users versus past 30-day users of tobacco-only or cannabis-only. Findings suggest that prevention programs for depression and substance use address tobacco and cannabis co-use.