The American Lung Association (ALA) has announced a plan to curb the youth vaping epidemic, addressing the needs of students, parents, and schools. Indeed, vaping in schools has become a serious issue, as more than one in four high school students now uses e-cigarettes. Although e-cigarette manufacturers like JUUL maintain that their products are safe, e-cigarette use in teens sets students up for a “lifetime of addiction,” according to the ALA.

Both the former FDA Commissioner Scott Gottlieb, M.D., and the U.S. Surgeon General VADM Jerome M. Adams, M.D., M.P.H. have referred to the ongoing issue of youth vaping as an “epidemic.”

Youth vaping has reportedly been heavily encouraged by marketing efforts from vape companies, including the leader in vaping products, JUUL, whose parent company is Philip Morris.

One of the major factors in youth e-cigarette usage is word-of-mouth marketing and peer pressure, as teens are surrounded by others using these products and encouraging them to join. While teens have had a break from these environments due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, many schools are now beginning to open, and the social pressure to vape will likely increase. Some kids may even turn to vaping as a method of reducing stress, including pandemic-related stressors like worry about the risk of illness or the unfamiliarity of new classroom structures.

Vape products contain harmful chemicals generally, including nicotine. These chemicals can damage lungs, especially in lungs that are still developing. And in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, this can put youth at greater risk for suffering more severe complications of COVID-19 if they end up contracting the virus.

What Is the American Lung Association’s Plan?

In an effort to reduce these risks, the American Lung Association recently announced a plan to bring an end to youth vaping, including vaping in schools.

There are four components to this plan:

• Public awareness. The ALA will partner with the Ad Council to give parents the facts about e-cigarettes and their risks, helping them have serious conversations with their kids before they even start to vape. Research from the Ad Council and C+R Research indicates that only 2 in 5 parents are confident in their ability to influence their child away from vaping. The nationwide awareness campaign will be called “Get Your Head Out of the Cloud.”
• Vape-Free Schools Initiative. This initiative is intended to help educators address vaping in schools specifically—as 27.5 percent of high school students now use e-cigarettes. This initiative offers vaping cessation assistance and an alternative suspension program for kids found vaping in schools. Training through this program are being offered virtually due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
• Targeted advocacy plan. The ALA intends to impact policies regarding e-cigarettes at local, state, and federal levels. The ALA will focus on proven tobacco prevention and control measures, such as including e-cigarettes in smokefree laws, removing flavored tobacco products from the markets, and taxing vape products like combustible cigarettes.
• $2 million research investment. The ALA has invested $2 million into research to better understand the effects of vaping, specifically on developing lungs. This will fund several research products from independent investigators to look at the impact of vaping in youth as well as how to reduce vaping in teens.

“Youth vaping has skyrocketed, placing our children at risk of a lifetime of tobacco addiction and harm to developing lungs and overall health,” said American Lung Association President and CEO Harold Wimmer. “We want to support students, parents and schools who are dealing with this rise in teen and tween vaping. The American Lung Association is leading a response to this public health crisis with a comprehensive plan and proven approaches to ensure a vape-free future for our kids.”