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APHA Scientific Session and Event Listing

Sunny Kim, PhD, School of Public/ Center for Research on US Latinos HIV/AIDS and Drug Abuse, Florida International University, HLS-575, 11200 SW 8th Street, Miami, FL 33199 and Pedro Castellon, BHS, School of Public Health, Florida International University, HLS, 11200 SW 8th Street, Miami, FL 33199, 305-205-0072, Paco0211@aol.com.

Objective: The goal of this study is to estimate the association between smoking frequency and marijuana use among college students of a large Hispanic serving institution. Methods: The numbers of days a student used cigarettes and marijuana during the 30 days preceeding the survey were collected from a nontraditional university located in a large urban area and serving mostly commuting students. Results: Among the 1,130 college students who responded, 11.6% used marijuana. Marijuana use was not different for male and female students (13.8% vs.10.3%: p £ 0.10). Approximately 18.6% smoked cigarettes within the last 30 days. Nearly 8.5% of the respondents smoked more than 20 days over the last 30 days (referred to as a frequent cigarettes user hereafter). Approximately 33.7% of cigarette smokers and 6.6% of non-smokers used marijuana within the last 30 days(p £ 0.01). Thus, the odds of marijuana use were 7.2 times higher if the student was a smoker. Considering only smokers, approximately 32.6% of frequent cigarette smokers and 34.6% of non-frequent smokers used marijuana within the last 30 days (p £ 0.77). Thus, the frequency of smoking is not associated with marijuana use. Conclusion: Prevalence of smoking was lower (18.6% vs. 29% nationwide) but the prevalence of marijuana use appears to be similar to that of the college students in the U.S.( 11.6% vs. 14.0% nationwide). Marijuana use and cigarette smoking were significantly associated regardless of the frequency of cigarette smoking. Even the low use of cigarette smoking was equally risky for the marijuana use.

Learning Objectives: At the conclusion of this session, the participant in this session will be able to

• Recognize the magnitude of marijuana use among college students.
• Understand the impact of smoking on marijuana use among college students

Keywords: Marijuana, Smoking

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

Not Answered