Think your kid wouldn't vape?
Statistics say they might.
It's time to get her head out of
the cloud and find out what there
is to know about why kids vape.
Here to enlighten us this morning is
American Lung Association national
spokesperson Doctor Albert Albert Rizzo.
Thank you so much for joining
us this morning, Doctor.
Thank you for the opportunity.
Yeah, so I wanted to ask you,
do you think vaping is being
specifically targeted towards our youth?
Well, we know that over the last 10 years,
the development of E cigarettes
and vaping has certainly exploded.
And the most recent statistics
show that between 2016 and 2020,
there was a 73% increase in
the number of kids smoking.
And right now there's a little over
2,000,000 kids who are using vaping devices.
So yes, it is a concern that we
have another generation becoming
addicted to nicotine products.
Yeah. Do you think the pandemic
at all played a part in that with
kids being at home more frequently?
Well, it's hard to say because
COVID led to people staying at home
and maybe less peer pressure than
we otherwise would see at school.
So children in the age to 10 to 14 years,
which we're targeting,
are affected by peer pressure.
And that peer pressure may
have been different being at
home as compared to in school.
But the stresses of just going
through COVID and at that age
group probably are one of the
main reasons that vaping was
picked up by this this age group.
And we know this is an important
age group for parents to be
involved to make some impressions.
So why is it important for parents to talk
to their kids about the vaping risks?
Well, the natural feeling is that though my
kid doesn't vape or good kids don't vape,
and that was our first program of as
you mentioned, get your head out of
the clouds and talk to your children.
The second iteration really brings
up the fact that you have to sit and
talk with the children in a way that's
meaningful for them and connect,
and that's why this program is used.
This campaign is using videos.
Popular culture.
Tik T.O.K videos,
particularly the backpack kid.
Russell Horning to to open up a
dialogue between the parents and
their children in that age group to
talk about why it's not good to vape.
Yeah, I think it's so important
to have that dialogue too,
to where teens can feel comfortable
enough to come to their parents and
have those conversations without
getting that instant judgment.
But being able to have
that open conversation.
So what are some of the facts about the
dangers and health effects of vaping?
Well, the important thing is remember,
these emissions are not just water vapor,
they contain chemicals the same way
tobacco smoke from a cigarette contains
harmful products that affect the lung,
affect brain development and
importantly have nicotine,
which is the biggest addicting
component of this.
And we know that children who vape
become three times more likely
to be addicted to nicotine.
And they're also four times more likely
to go on to traditional cigarettes,
so the chemicals in the vaping
product are harmful and addicting.
That's one of the main messages that we have.
To get across to children in this age group
and what sign should parents look for
if they suspect their child is vaping?
Just some changes in behavior,
maybe maybe sneaking behind their
back a little bit using or going
to room to use a device that
otherwise would be freely available.
So a change of behavior is the
biggest thing to pick up on children,
and what resources are there
to empower parents to talk to
their children about vaping?
Well, the main one we talk
about is talk about vaping.org,
which is on the website
anditsalso@lung.org which is the
American Lung Association's main website,
and there are a number of tools on there
for parents to start the discussion.
Our PSA show as I mentioned before,
some popular culture and videos from
Tik T.O.K that they could attractive
to children to have a dialogue
with their with their parents.
And there's a lot of help about how to
talk to your children at those websites.
So talk about talk about vaping.org
is the main place to go.
And doctor why is it
important that parents have?
These conversations with their
kids before they go back to school.
As I said, the biggest reason children
start vaping is peer pressure and
stress of what what school can deliver.
So having the discussion at home
while they're still at home with you
on summer vacation or family trips,
this is the time to connect with them
and bring up the issue rather than
waiting for them to bring it to you,
which they often won't do because
the peer pressure it's best to
bring the discussion full,
full upfront and answer their questions.
Very helpful information. Doctor Rizzo.
Thank you so much for joining
us this morning and like he said
to start the conversation visit.
Talk about vaping.org.