Concerned about youth vaping? So are we. We have been hearing from our partners at local schools, …
Continue Reading about 4SC in the News: Vaping Still an Issue for Young People (March 2023) →
If you are looking for trustworthy information that you can use to educate yourself, share with family members, or discuss with a young person, here are a variety of resources:
The Massachusetts Department of Public Health (DPH) has a comprehensive webpage titled Learn about e-cigarettes, vapes, and use by young people. It has information about vaping, including:
– the basics of what vaping is an how it affects young people
– information for schools, including curricula and other tools
– information for parents and other adults who care about kids and teens
Frequently Asked Questions About Vaping PDF for online viewing or printing. No-nonsense information from the MA Department of Public Health. This is the brochure we’ve been giving to parents and teachers in our community.
Vaping Conversation Guide from the American Lung Association - tips and suggestions based on science about how to have effective conversations and keep lines of communication open with children and youth.
Talk with Your Teen About E-Cigarettes: A Tip Sheet for Parents This one is from the United States Surgeon General’s Office.
There are a LOT of misleading or outdated videos out there about vaping! After reviewing many videos, here are a few that we feel comfortable sharing!
Breath of Stress Air (15 seconds) (2022) Very short video from The Truth Campaign noting that vaping can actually increase feelings of stress even though vape companies have worked to get people to believe the opposite. Very easy to share - you could use it as a conversation starter!
This Is Quitting - Quitting Resources for Teens/Youth and Young Adults
Free, anonymous text messaging program with messages from other youth working on quitting and tips to quit and stay quit. This is Quitting is tailored based on age (within 13 to 24 years old) and product usage to give teens and young adults appropriate recommendations about quitting.
Text DITCHVAPE to 88709.
MyLifeMyQuit - Quitting Resource for Teens/Youth
A free, confidential resource that supports teens who want to stop vaping, smoking, or using other nicotine products. The site also has information for parents, educators, and other adults. MyLifeMyQuit includes:
How Vaping Nicotine Can Affect A Teenage Brain (October, 2019 and still relevant) Article and link to a 4-minute radio story about how nicotine and the other chemicals in vaping can affect developing teenage brains. By Jon Hamilton, from NPR
The Overlooked Environmental Impact of Vaping (July, 2023) Article from Time Magazine about the increasing problem of waste from disposable vapes. In addition to plastic, the waste created is both electronic waste (because of the batteries) and toxic waste (because of the nicotine and other chemicals).
Vaping increases risk of chronic lung disease by 30%, according to new study (December, 2019 and still relevant)
This USA Today article highlights the results of a large study about the effects of vaping over several years. Research shows that vaping increases risk of lung diseases like emphysema, asthma and bronchitis by 30% - a lot!. The link to the journal article with the original research is also here. (We don't recommend the video at the top of the article - it's an overview of vaping that isn't great and isn't related to this specific article.) By Jorge L. Ortiz, from USA Today
If you are an educator, student, or someone else interested in vaping curricula or vaping discipline policies for schools, we have a bunch of info on that too. We also have more links to longer articles and research if you want to dive deeper into this topic. Feel free to contact 4SC Coordinator Ilana and let her know what you are looking for!