Vaping while high: Factors associated with vaping marijuana among youth in the United States

•Large proportion (26.2 %) of U.S. youth have ever vaped marijuana in 2018.•Vaping marijuana was associated with tobacco products use of cigarette, e-cigarette, hookah and cigar.•The odds of vaping marijuana increase as lifetime use frequency of e-cigarette increases. The use of e-cigarette and other vaping devices have become popular among youth in US. In addition to nicotine, vaping devices can be used to vaporize marijuana. However, factors associated with vaping marijuana among youth remain unexplored. This study examined the rates of vaping marijuana and its correlates among youth in the US. We conducted a cross-sectional analysis of survey data from the 2018 National Youth Tobacco Survey of middle-and high-schoolers who provided information regarding ever use of vaping devices to vape marijuana (n = 10,680). Multivariable regression model was conducted to assess factors associated with vaping marijuana. Overall, 26.2 % of participants reported ever vaping marijuana. High-schoolers [vs middle-schoolers; aOR = 2.16,95 %CI:1.76−2.67], Hispanics [vs Whites; aOR = 2.30,95 %CI:1.90−2.80], and Blacks [vs Whites; aOR = 1.42,95 %CI:1.04−1.92] were more likely to ever vape marijuana. Those who perceived e-cigarette as equally addictive to cigarettes, were less likely to ever vape marijuana [aOR = 0.79, 95 %CI:0.65−0.97]. In addition, those who reported ever trying cigarettes [aOR = 1.63,95 %CI:1.29−2.06], cigars [aOR = 2.62, 95 %CI:2.08−3.30], or hookah [aOR = 2.88,95 %CI:2.14−3.89] were more likely to ever vape marijuana. Lifetime frequency of e-cigarette use was associated with greater odds of ever vaping marijuana (p-values