In the last 10 years,“e-cigarettes” or “vape pens” have become the nicotine-delivery device of choice among our youth. According to a 2022 survey of over 2.5 million high school and middle school students, about 14% of high school students and about 3% of middle school students use vape products. Of these students, more than 42% report vaping at least 20 times in the previous month.
Unfortunately, students in Mississippi and in small towns like Raymond aren’t so isolated from the world that they can’t find ways to acquire vape devices. While there’s no way to know for sure the percent of CHA students that vape regularly or periodically, we do know that this trend is hitting our campus. Just like we parents used to see students go behind the gym or into the bathroom to sneak a dip or a smoke, some of our students are experimenting with vaping, and we would not be honest with ourselves if we didn’t think that some are addicted to the nicotine in these devices.
Many young people see vaping as a “safe” alternative to smoking, but the evidence shows that there is nothing safe about it. There are certain aspects of vaping that may be less damaging to the body than smoking traditional cigarettes (e.g. vapes do not have tar where cigarettes do); however, we believe that the following analogy may be helpful.
Let’s equate the danger of smoking tobacco products with the danger of walking in front of a car traveling at 60 mph. We should avoid this at all costs, right! Well, the danger of vaping could be considered the equivalent of walking in front of a car going 30 mph. Sure, vaping may be better than smoking, but that does not mean it’s good for you. In fact, it’s a horrible idea!
There has been much said about how the vaping companies have “targeted” our youth with fruity and minty flavors, and there have been several pushes to regulate this aspect of the industry. However, vaping devices continue to find their way into the hands of our youth, and we at CHA believe that family education is one of the keys to helping to decrease use among our students.
One of the most concerning issues with vaping is that it is very difficult to know what is inside of the liquid in these devices. In fact, if you were to walk into a vape store, you would find thousands of options, many of which contain dangerous chemicals. In addition, stores and individuals can mix juices without any governmental oversight whatsoever, just google “homemade vape juice” to see how quickly and easily our students can figure out how to do this. One of the ultimate concerns is that our underage students can’t go into a vape store or a drug store to get their supply; therefore, many are getting them already unpackaged with who-knows-what inside.
It is doubtful that there is a school in the country that has teenagers that is “vape-free,” and (unfortunately) we can confirm that we have students that vape on and off campus. In my generation, we had the folks that would sneak behind the gym and smoke cigarettes; today it’s vaping. At this point, we would assume that every CHA high school student knows some of the students that vape, and every student knows where students go to vape without getting caught. Unfortunately, we would also guess that most of our students would know exactly who to ask to get a vaping device for just a few dollars. It is also important for students and parents to know that, just like underage drinking, it is not legal for teens to possess vaping devices in Mississippi, particularly on school campuses. Any older students providing vaping devices to teens are also breaking the law.
CHA is working on a broad plan to curb the vaping behaviors on campus, including installing Vape Detectors in some of the bathrooms. However, ultimately, we at CHA believe that parents/guardians of our students should be part of the solution. If you have a student that is 7th grade or older, the CHA administration recommends that you educate yourself about the dangers of vaping and have a conversation with your child. Ask if they know of students who vape, ask if they’ve been offered a hit, ask if they are concerned about any of their friends. We are not searching for a list of offenders that we can discipline, we are hoping that open communication and honesty can help our kids know that there are legitimate problems with vaping, and that we are on their side.
In addition to looking at the articles linked in this article, we suggest that you watch the following YouTube videos with your child.
This one explains some of the anatomical issues with vaping and touches on some of the medical concerns.
This is a news report outlining some of the lung illness concerns.
This particularly troubling video explains one of the worst outcomes that has been seen in a teen who had only been vaping a few months.
If you and your child would like information about quitting, you can find lots of quality information at this website. Alternatively, everybody that has signed this document is more than happy to take a “counseling” approach to any student that would like help quitting. That puts us in an odd position… if we catch you, disciplinary action will follow… if you come to us, we will try to help you as best as we can. We promise.
Thank you for letting CHA be a part of the “village” that cares for your kids!
Steve McCartney- Head of School
Cheryl Gray- School Counselor
Tyanne McCoy- Secondary Principal and School Nurse
Melissa Nix- Elementary Principal
If you would like a pdf version of this article to share with others, you can find that here.