MONTGOMERY COUNTY, Ky. (LEX 18) — A county school superintendent is trying to find a way to reduce youth vaping. He said his colleagues in districts across the state have seen a problem - more kids using e-cigarettes. The FDA says (https://www.fda.gov/tobacco-products/youth-and-tobacco/results-annual-national-youth-tobacco-survey#2022%20Findings) that 14 percent of high schoolers vape. The superintendent told Sean Moody the solution involves everyone.
As the school year gets underway in Montgomery County, Superintendent Matthew Thompson has made an appeal to the whole town.
"This is something that we've got to tackle community-wide," Thompson said.
Thompson says over the last few years, more and more students have been using e-cigarettes.
"We just see a steady, dangerous increase in the number of our students, underage youth, who are engaging in vaping. That's vaping the nicotine pods, but then that leads into vaping other things," he said.
Lately, Thompson said, the district has seen more students vaping THC. Thompson noted that traditional, non-THC e-cigarettes can be harmful to teens.
"They don't understand how to help when they start going through withdrawal symptoms. Then, we see things like depression and anxiety increase dramatically, and they do it even more to get back to that feeling of, kind of, normal," Thompson said.
The CDC says (https://www.cdc.gov/tobacco/basic_information/e-cigarettes/Quick-Facts-on-the-Risks-of-E-cigarettes-for-Kids-Teens-and-Young-Adults.html#why-is-nicotine-unsafe) 99% of e-cigarettes contain nicotine, which can harm the parts of adolescent brains that control attention, learning, mood, and impulse control. Thompson said students have told them they can buy e-cigarettes over the counter in some places. Hence, he and the Montgomery County Board of Education sent out a letter (https://www.montgomery.kyschools.us/uploaded/Board/Vape-Vaping_Letter_0823.pdf?1693416910922&fbclid=IwAR2WEqT1Euuluu9ha_63VFR8EjEwExyv3ihUb00ZkJQPg5uxKCB-Fi0lMCE) to the community asking for help keeping vaping products out of schools.
"Our open letter really asks for the level of awareness of those businesses to be increased, to make sure that they're asking them to put those products behind the counter, out of sight of minors, to make sure that they train all their employees about the laws around selling those products to minors, and making sure they ensure that they're not," Thompson said.
Thompson said he wants to be sure kids in Montgomery County hear the message, too.
"What I'd like to say to students is, it's not in any way healthy for you. It's going to be very difficult to stop once you start," he said.
