Event highlights vaping risks
EL CENTRO — Imperial County Office of Education on Wednesday held the first of three hour-long presentations intended to educate parents about vaping and the risks it poses to students.
Wednesday’s presentation, entitled “The Dangers of Vaping,” was held at the Jimmie Cannon Theater at Southwest High School.
It will be followed by a similar event March 19 from 5: 30 to 6: 30 p. m. at Brawley Union High School. The final one will be held April 2 from 5:30 to 6:30 p.m. at Calexico High School.
For these presentations, Central Union High School District, Brawley Union High School District and Calexico Unified School District have partnered with ICOE, Coalition for a Tobacco- Free Imperial County, Imperial County Public Health Department, El Centro Regional Medical Center, El Centro Police Department and other agencies to help parents and students understand the impact of vaping.
These entities all make up what is known as the Anti-Vaping Committee.
CUHSD Superintendent Dr. Ward Andrus began to form the committee after noticing how prevalent vaping had become among local youth.
It was mentioned during Wednesday’s presentation that vapes are extremely inconspicuous devices that can discreetly deliver high concentrations of nicotine, which is addictive and can harm adolescent brain development.
Vapes can also be used to inhale THC, the main active ingredient of cannabis.
A video played during the presentation showed that vapes can be in the form of a watch, a pen or even hidden on the strap of a backpack.
CUHS’ School Resource Officer Ascencion Felix showed the types of products that have been found at Southwest and Central Union high schools during the 2019-20 school year.
The district’s school resource officers have responded to 36 vaping-related incidents (18 at each school).
Vaping- related products were found five times at SHS and four times at CUHS.
Photos of the confiscated items, as well as items confiscated at Desert Oasis High School, were projected on the theater’s screen.
“This thing is happening everywhere at every single school” Felix said. “So we need to be a little more vigilant with our children and check what they have in their backpacks.”
The officer noted that SROs have tested these devices to see if they contained THC, many of which tested positive.
“It’s marijuana,” Felix said. “Now the kids are doing this because it’s easier and they can hide it. And there’s different flavors, so when security goes and checks the restrooms, it smells like if someone put on deodorant.”
Felix told the audience that SROs are aggressively looking to try to put a dent into vaping products being on CUHSD’s schools sites.
In CUHSD, first- time offenders caught vaping tobacco products are assigned to Saturday school to complete anti-vaping lessons. THC offenders have more severe consequences.
Fernanda Lynch, health program coordinator of the county Tobacco Education Project, shared during her presentation that one pod, or cartridge, for the popular vaping device Juul is equivalent to smoking 20 cigarettes.
Southwest High School senior Xoixza Lopez shared something she’s observed among her peers on social media. “There are people that I see on social media, they post that they finish one Juul pod within one day,” she said. “Imagine the amount of people that go through two or three of those pods within a week.”
Lopez also mentioned that she’s seen on social media some of her peers selling vaping products, such as Puff Bars for $15 each.
She’s also noticed how vaping cartridges are named after popular candy products, thus further enticing youths to try vaping for the flavors.
“I recognize that our peers are also doing it, and we need to address it,” she said. “And that’s why we’re here, to address this issue.”
Fellow SHS senior Shivani Patel shared on stage why she believes youth get into vaping.
“It’s curiosity,” Patel said. “At our age, we’re very curious about a lot of things. Many just do it (vaping) to try it.”
Lopez and Patel are members of Southwest’s HOSA Future Health Professionals program. As part of their class project for the HOSA, the two have advocated against vaping on campus.
They even hosted a Ditch the Juul assembly this school year.
The two SHS seniors were recently invited to be a part of the Anti-Vaping Committee, and thus gave a presentation during Wednesday’s event.
On stage, Lopez and Patel were given certificates of recognition by Sen. Ben Hueso for their efforts.
“It’s OK to invade your child’s privacy,” Lopez told the audience in her closing remarks. “Don’t be scared to ask questions if you realize something is kind of off.”