COLORADO SPRINGS – According to new state data about 27 percent of high school students in Colorado are using e-cigarettes which is twice the national average.
On Tuesday, workers with El Paso County Public Health told News 5 it’s a state health crisis. They said kids don’t view vaping as risky as cigarettes. However, the effects of vaping could bring about devastating health effects.
Tobacco Education & Prevention Partnership Program Manager Dacia Hudson said, “Kids’ brains are still developing up until the age of 25 and we know that nicotine addiction can be very serious for the developing brain…we do know that vaping has been linked to popcorn lung which is a lung disease.”
Recently, Colorado Governor John Hickenlooper signed an executive order to crack down on e-cigarettes used by teens. The order recommends for state legislators to raise the minimum age of purchase from 18 to 21 for tobacco and vaping products, and to consider banning the sale of flavored tobacco and e-cigarette items.
