Many of you will have seen articles in the Canberra Times this week on the prevalence of Vaping that is occurring amongst our young people.

Sadly, many of the young people that we have spoken to think that vaping is not a problem and is simply a harmful vapour. It is seen as a “healthy" alternative to smoking. Some students also do not seem to be aware that Vaping is illegal for people under 18. This perception is reinforced through a number of different Social Media outlets. We are working here at school to disperse these myths but having parents as part of these conversations is very important.

At JPC we do have consequences for students who are found vaping at school but we also follow these consequences up with an intense “Vaping and it’s Dangers” workshop. In the workshop, the students complete a number of activities that help them learn why vaping is as dangerous for their health as smoking.

We thought it would be very helpful to share these resources with our Parents and Carers so they can also use them when having conversations with their child/children about the many dangers that Vaping presents. The last two resources are links to informative videos that are short and easy to watch.

We certainly learnt a lot ourselves when putting the Workshop together and working through the activities with the students and hope this information will be equally valuable for parents and carers.

Stephanie O’Meara and Chauntell McNamara

Resources

Vaping is the inhaling of a vapour created by an electronic cigarette (e-cigarette) or other vaping devices. E-cigarettes are battery-powered smoking devices. They have cartridges filled with a liquid that usually contains nicotine, flavourings, and chemicals. The liquid is heated into a vapour, which the person inhales. That's why using e-cigarettes is called "vaping." Vaping hasn't been around long enough for us to know how it affects the body over time. But health experts are reporting serious lung damage in people who vape, including some deaths. Vaping is highly addictive and can:

• slow brain development in kids and teens and affect memory, concentration, learning, self-control, attention, and mood 
• increase the risk of other types of addiction as adults

E-cigarettes also:

• irritate the lungs
• may cause serious lung damage and even death
• can lead to smoking cigarettes and other forms of tobacco use

For more information about health impacts, please see our factsheet on the Health impacts of e-cigarettes for children, young people and adults (PDF).

Vaping is illegal for people under the age of 18

In the ACT, personal vaporisers, including electronic cigarettes are regulated in much the same way as tobacco. It is illegal to sell electronic cigarettes to people under the age of 18 and to use electronic cigarettes in legislated smoke-free areas in the ACT. Restrictions also apply to advertising, displays and marketing. These measures are designed to prevent the uptake of electronic cigarettes by non-smokers, including children and young people, and to protect non-users from exposure to electronic cigarette vapour. For more information: https://www.health.act.gov.au/about-our-health-system/population-health/smoke-free-environments/electronic-cigarettes