The growing, dangerous popularity of vaping
By: Rebecca Hudson
Murray County News Staffwriter
It’s a silent and stealthy epidemic that is making its way into the school and affecting even the youngest of students with unhealthy, deadly results. School principal Jake Scandrett introduced Jennifer Nelson, a public health educator with the Southwest Minnesota Health and Human Services, who went on to present information on the growing and dangerous popularity of vaping and/or e-cigarette use in students under the age of eighteen.
The school is rolling out Vaping detectors in its bathrooms, Scandrett said and is implementing an anti-vape curriculum that teaches students the risks and dangers of using these products. In addition, the principal noted that the school intends to continue educating the public and communicating with parents about the growing phenomena.
If caught with an electronic cigarette device, he noted, a student will serve an in-school suspension for a first offense and out of school suspension for a subsequent offense. In addition, students will be subject to arrest if they are under the age of 18.
Vaping devices, Nelson demonstrated, are available in a vast array of selections and are readily available for purchase on the internet or at smoke shops. Nelson displayed various e-cigarettes and explained how they are used to deliver a stream of nicotine as well as a mixture of chemicals and cancer-causing heavy metals.
Using “e-juice”, E-cigarettes emit an aerosol that is a mixture of liquid particles suspended in a gas and can contain many chemicals, including nicotine, harmful compounds, heavy metals such as nickel, tin and lead and cancer-causing chemicals. These juices are being manufactured in thousands of flavors meant to appeal to young people such as strawberry and cola, and have available kid-friendly wraps in which to disguise the e-cigarette device.
E-cigarettes have an atomizer that turns the liquid, or juice, into a vapor. The device needs to be charged like a cellular phone and is being made to resemble a conventional phone charger that plugs directly into a computer or wall socket.
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