The PAStart Communication Action Series: VAPING Toolkit

The best time to talk to your teens about vaping is before they start.

The tobacco industry markets vaping products to your teens and pre-teens using teen-friendly flavors to mask the taste of nicotine and other chemicals. Know how these tactics create a culture of misinformation among your teen’s social group.

Vaping has quickly risen to one of the most common substance use behaviors among teens. One in five high school students reported vaping in the past month.* According to the Surgeon General, vaping has now reached “epidemic proportions among this population.” Vaping is inhaling the aerosol produced by an electronic combustion device (Juul, PuffBar, and others). Ingredients found in these aerosols can include nicotine, formaldehyde, lead, marijuana (THC), and other toxic and addictive chemicals.

Due to their small size, most vape devices are easy to hide. As one design becomes familiar, new streamlined devices hit the market all the time and can resemble USB drive sticks, cell phones, pens, and lipstick. Some are disposable, and others are rechargeable.

Health effects from vaping can include coughing and wheezing, mood swings, headaches, seizures, vomiting, asthma, and lung disease.* Additionally, vaping has been demonstrated to negatively affect teens’ attention span, learning, and impulse control in school, sports,s and social environments.*

Parents and caregivers are engaged in a balancing act between granting young people their freedom and keeping them safe. Therefore, it is important when talking to the young person in your life that you do so mindfully, following the suggestions outlined in the toolkit and utilizing the resources for support.