Neighborhood deprivation and gentrification predicted higher cannabis, cigarette, and e-cigarette use, while immigrant neighborhoods showed lower rates.
Urban health researchers; public health policymakers; prevention planners.
Neighborhood deprivation and gentrification both predicted higher substance use
What the researchers found
Material deprivation, social deprivation, and household insecurity were positively associated with all three substances. Gentrified neighborhoods also had higher use. High immigrant/visible minority neighborhoods had lower use.
Why it matters
Most prevention targets individuals, but neighborhood characteristics independently predict use, supporting environmental interventions.
The numbers in context
All three deprivation measures positively associated with cannabis, cigarette, and e-cigarette use. Gentrified: higher odds. High immigrant/minority: lower odds.
How the study worked
Canadian Partnership for Tomorrow's Health cohort. Neighborhood-level measures linked via postal codes. Regression models adjusted for individual factors.
What this study cannot tell us
Cross-sectional. Self-reported. Postal code-level measures. Canadian context.
How to read the evidence
Large population-based cohort with geospatial data, but cross-sectional.
When this study was published
2025 study
The bigger picture
Gentrification increasing substance use challenges assumptions that neighborhood improvement automatically improves health.
Questions still open
- What connects gentrification to substance use? Do immigrant neighborhoods provide protective structures?
Common questions
Why does gentrification increase substance use?
Why do immigrant neighborhoods have lower use?
Read the original research
Neighborhood level factors and use of cigarettes, cannabis and e-cigarettes: A population-based study among Canadian adults.
PloS one, 20(11), e0320035
Citation
Fraser Wood, Truman; Dummer, Trevor J B; Peters, Cheryl E; Murphy, Rachel A. (2025). Neighborhood level factors and use of cigarettes, cannabis and e-cigarettes: A population-based study among Canadian adults.. PloS one, 20(11), e0320035. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0320035