With summer vacation upon us, kids have more opportunities to enjoy free time. Although there are some risks associated with that freedom, we are encouraged by the good news that the majority of today's youth are choosing not to use substances.
National data from the 2025 Monitoring the Future Survey showed that reported use of most drugs remained relatively low among U.S. teens, with many students reporting no recent use of marijuana, alcohol, or nicotine. Still, prevention matters because the products, risks, and ways that youth are exposed continue to change - meanwhile drug potency is on the rise.
With this in mind, our prevention partners at Informed Families - The Florida Family Partnership - have kindly shared an informative article outlining what today's youth are seeing, hearing, and potentially being offered when it comes to alcohol, vaping, THC products, and other substances. In this week's blog, we will highlight a few of these - beginning today with an update on Vaping.
Vaping Is Still a Major Youth Prevention Concern - vaping remains one of the most important substance use prevention topics for parents, schools, and communities. According to the FDA and CDC, e-cigarettes were still the most commonly used tobacco product among U.S. youth in 2024, with 1.63 million middle and high school students reporting current e-cigarette use.
Parents should know that many of today's vape products are easy to hide, flavored to appeal to youth, and often disposable. More than 8-in-10 current youth e-cigarette users reported using flavored e-cigarettes, and disposables were the most commonly used device type among current youth users.
This is an important health issue. Teen vaping can affect attention, learning, mood, and impulse control. Most e-cigarettes contain nicotine, which is highly addictive and can harm the developing adolescent brain. Parents should continue monitoring their children's activities and keep the lines of conversation open.
InnerAct Alliance can help! Our agency provides prevention education presentations at schools, summer camps, youth programs, and community events to help youth learn about the risks of alcohol, tobacco, and other substances. Working together, we can help our children feel informed, supported, and prepared to make healthy decisions. Programs are provided free of charge - call us today at 802-0777 for more information.
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