A recent report shows that vaping by high school students is on the rise, which has led United States Surgeon General Jerome V. Adams to declare vaping among youth an epidemic.

Results from the 2018 Monitoring the Future Survey found that 37.3 percent of 12th grade students reported taking part in “any vaping” during the previous 12 months, an increase from 27.8 percent in 2017.

High school seniors’ reported use of vaping nicotine during the 30-day period prior to the survey also rose significantly, nearly doubling from 11 percent in 2017 to 20.9 percent in 2018. Reports of vaping marijuana by high school seniors during the previous year increased to 13.1 percent from 9.5 percent in 2017.

The problem also exists among younger children. More than 10% of eighth graders said they vaped nicotine in the past year.

As the surgeon general emphasized, it is vital that parents and teachers are aware of this issue and be aware of the harm that vaping poses, especially to youth.

Because of the deceptive nature of vaping devices, which are small and can look like everyday items such as pens or USB flash drives, it is crucial that parents and teachers are aware of what vaping devices look like and are educated on the signs of vaping.

The Partnership for a Drug-Free New Jersey offers the 15 Minute Child Break, a free education program for parents and other adults that focuses on the trends and effects of substance use, as well as effective ways to discuss those issues with children.

The Partnership has added information on vaping to the multimedia presentation, which usually lasts about one hour. You can also find out more about vaping on PDFNJ’s homepage or by clicking here.