Accepted for/Published in: Journal of Medical Internet Research
Date Submitted: Dec 6, 2018
Open Peer Review Period: Dec 10, 2018 - Feb 4, 2019
Date Accepted: Jul 21, 2019
(closed for review but you can still tweet)
Content Analysis of Reddit Messages about Underage JUUL Use
ABSTRACT
Background:
The popularity of JUUL among youth has also recently been reported in news media and academic articles, which has raised great public health concerns. Little research has been conducted on the age distribution, geographic distribution, approaches to buying JUUL, and flavor preferences pertaining to underage JUUL users.
Objective:
To analyze social media data related to demographics, methods of access, product characteristics and use patterns of underage JUUL use.
Methods:
We collected publicly available JUUL-related data from Reddit. We extracted and summarized the age, location, and flavor information of subreddit UnderageJuul users. We also compared the common and unique users between subreddit UnderageJuul and subreddit “JUUL”. The approaches of purchasing JUULs were analyzed by manually examining the content of the Reddit threads.
Results:
716 threads and 2,935 comments were collected from the subreddit UnderageJuul before it was shut down. Most posts did not mention specific age, but ages ranged from 13 to greater than 21 in those that did. Mango, mint, and cucumber were the most popular among the seven flavors from JUUL’s official website, and 336 subreddit UnderageJuul posts mentioned 7 discreet approaches to circumvent relevant legal regulations in order to get JUUL products, the most common of which was purchasing JUUL from other Reddit users (N = 181). Almost half of the UnderageJuul users (389/844) also participated in discussions on the main JUUL subreddit, so were seeking information across multiple Reddit forums. Most posters were from large metropolitan areas.
Conclusions:
The subreddit social media venue UnderageJuul functioned as a forum to explore methods of obtaining JUUL, and to discuss and recommend specific flavors before it was shut down. About half of those using subreddit UnderageJuul also used the more general “JUUL” subreddit, so a forum still exists where youth can attempt to share information on how to obtain JUUL and other products. Exploration of such social media data in real time for rapid public health surveillance could provide early warning for significant health risks before they become major public health threats.
Citation
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Copyright
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