SAPCA Launches Vaping Prevention Social Media Campaign 

A DCHS CONNECT NEWS HIGHLIGHT

January 15, 2021--This month, the Substance Abuse Prevention Coalition of Alexandria (SAPCA) launched a vaping prevention social media campaign featuring six short videos created by Alexandria teens to raise awareness of the dangers of e-cigarette use and encourage youth to stay substance-free.

The videos, created by T.C. Williams High School students, feature Alexandria youth sharing the reasons why they do not vape. The vaping prevention campaign invites social media followers to share the videos, along with the reasons they themselves do not vape. 

E-cigarettes is an umbrella term for a variety of devices that includes JUULs and vape pens. E-cigarettes produce an inhalable aerosol that contains thousands of harmful chemicals, including formaldehyde, lead arsenic and carcinogens--substances known to cause cancer. Many e-cigarettes also contain nicotine, the addictive substance found in tobacco products. 

When teens are exposed to nicotine while the brain is still developing, they are more likely to develop an addition. Thirty percent of teens that use e-cigarettes start smoking traditional cigarettes and other combustible tobacco products, such as cigars or cigarillos, within six months.

Most Alexandria teens are not using e-cigarettes. A Youth Risk Behavior Survey showed that in 2016, only 7.5% of 10th graders and 6% of eighth graders reported using e-cigarettes in the past 30 days. The vaping prevention campaign aims to keep that figure low because youth who reach the age of 18 without smoking are three times less likely to ever start.

Visit alexandriava.gov/SAPCA to learn more about the campaign, access free resources and information on how to talk with youth about the risks of e-cigarette use and learn how to support youth in quitting use of e-cigarettes and other tobacco products.