It’s a fact: kids hide things from their parents, for whatever reason. It seems that now, more than ever, parents need to have good communication with their children because outside influences encourage secrecy for their own benefits. As parents, we are legally responsible for our children, the souls we brought into this world, have loved to the moon and back. We protect and guide them for their good health and well-being, encourage them to dream and pursue their goals.
Let’s use vaping for an example. More youth than adults use e-cigarettes, says the U.S. Surgeon General.
Johns Hopkins University notes the 2021 National Youth Tobacco Survey which states that more than two million U.S. middle school and high school students reported using e-cigarettes, with eight to 10 of them using flavored e-cigarettes. Further, they tell us teens believe vaping is less harmless than smoking. Cost per use is less than traditional cigarettes, and youth and adults prefer the lack of smoke.
The disposable e-cigarette use has increased 1,000 percent among high school students and 400 percent among middle school students since 2019.
“E-cigarettes are devices that heat a liquid into an aerosol the user inhales,” explains the Surgeon General. The liquid has nicotine, flavors and other additives. The e-cigarettes contain ultrafine particles that can be inhaled deep into the lungs. Some of the chemicals in the flavors are linked to serious lung disease as well as volatile organic compounds, and heavy metals like nickel, tin, and lead.
Nicotine is addictive. And the e-cigarettes are as addictive as traditional cigarettes, as addictive as cocaine and heroin, says John Hopkins. They contain more nicotine than traditional cigarettes. Some published reports online say that disposable e-cigarettes sold in this country between 2017 and 2022 contained three times the nicotine strength and five times the e-liquid capacity. The price also dropped by 70 percent. Why do you think this is?
The experts at Johns Hopkins admit that vaping is less harmful than smoking. But it still is not safe. There are 7,000 chemicals in traditional tobacco, many of them toxic. Although there are fewer toxic chemicals in vapes, there are still thousands which they have not yet identified.
Vaping is bad for your heart and lungs. Nicotine is the primary agent. It raises blood pressure, speeds up adrenalin, increases the heart rate, and increases the risk of heart attack, they say. E-cigarettes are just as addictive as traditional tobacco. A recent study found that most people who intend to use e-cigarettes to kick the nicotine habit end up continuing to use both.
The secrecy? Highlighters, pens, and some hoodies and backpacks are designed for e-cigarette use in the classroom, at home, all to make profit from marketing efforts grow. At human expense. Go back and read about the risks. Go online and search for reliable resources that provide the information you need to know to best provide for your children.
The Road of Recovery RV is coming to Columbiana and Jefferson counties in the coming week. On the Road of Recovery has interviewed over 250 individuals in 64 counties across the state and is on the road with Season 3. The RV will be at Family Recovery’s Lisbon site Wednesday and the Steubenville site on Thursday. To see what this program is all about check it out online: www.ontheroadofrecovery.org.
Family Recovery Center has professional staff who are ready to listen when you have no one else to talk to. The goal is for the health and well-being of all. Contact the agency at 964 N. Market St., Lisbon; phone, 330-424-1468; or email info@familyrecovery.org. Visit the website at familyrecovery.org. You can find Family Recovery Center at Facebook. FRC is funded in part by United Way of Northern Columbiana County.