WASHINGTON, March 15, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- Kids in
Michigan will unite against
tobacco use on March 20 as they join
thousands of young people nationwide to mark Kick Butts Day, an
annual day of youth activism sponsored by the Campaign for
Tobacco-Free Kids. More than 1,000 events are planned across
the United States (see below for a
list of local events).
This year, kids are focused on kicking Juul, the e-cigarette
that has become enormously popular among youth across the
country.
While cigarette smoking among high school students nationwide
has fallen to 8.1 percent, e-cigarette use among high schoolers
rose by an alarming 78 percent in 2018 alone – to 20.8 percent of
the student population. In 2018, more than 3.6 million middle and
high school students used e-cigarettes. U.S. public health leaders
have called youth e-cigarette use an "epidemic" that is addicting a
new generation of kids.
In Michigan, 14.8 percent of
high school students use e-cigarettes, while 10.5 percent smoke
cigarettes. Tobacco use claims 16,200 lives in Michigan and costs the state $4.6 billion in health care bills each year.
On Kick Butts Day, youth and health advocates are calling for
strong action to reverse the youth e-cigarette epidemic. In
particular, they are calling on the Food and Drug Administration,
states and cities to ban all flavored tobacco products, including
e-cigarettes in flavors like cotton candy, gummy bear and mango
that tempt kids. Other effective strategies to reduce youth tobacco
use include laws raising the tobacco sale age to 21, significant
tobacco tax increases, comprehensive smoke-free laws and
well-funded tobacco prevention programs.
In Michigan, youth advocates
are urging state lawmakers to pass legislation to raise the tobacco
sale age to 21. Hillsdale & Branch County Youth Engaged in
Prevention will join forces with Teens Against Tobacco Use
Grand Rapids at the State Capitol building in Lansing to speak out against tobacco with
a focus on raising the tobacco age. They will wear matching
t-shirts, display banners on the Capitol steps and present to
legislators. Time: 12 PM. Location:
Michigan State Capitol Rotunda, 100 N. Capitol Avenue, Lansing. Contact: Kelley Mapes (517) 279-9561 ext.103 or
Libby Stern (616) 486-6503.
"This year on Kick Butts Day, we're challenging policy makers at
every level to do their part to reverse the youth e-cigarette
epidemic and continue driving down youth tobacco use," said
Matthew L. Myers, President of the
Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids. "We cannot allow e-cigarettes,
especially Juul, to addict another generation and reverse the
enormous progress we've made in reducing youth tobacco use."
Key facts about e-cigarettes include:
- The main cause of the youth e-cigarette epidemic is Juul, which
looks like a computer flash drive, is small and easy to hide,
delivers a powerful dose of nicotine, and comes in kid-friendly
flavors like mango, fruit and mint. According to the manufacturer,
each Juul "pod" (cartridge) delivers as much nicotine as a pack of
20 cigarettes.
- E-cigarettes pose serious health risks for kids. The U.S.
Surgeon General has found that youth use of nicotine in any form –
including e-cigarettes – is unsafe, causes addiction and can harm
the developing adolescent brain, affecting learning, memory and
attention. Studies also show that young people who use e-cigarettes
are more likely to become cigarette smokers.
On Kick Butts Day, youth join in creative events including
signing pledges to be tobacco-free, learning about the harmful
chemicals in tobacco products and organizing rallies at state
capitols.
In Michigan, additional events
and activities include:
On March 19, Students at Union
City High School in Union
City will create informative posters that describe the
dangers of using tobacco or tobacco-related products. Time:
8 AM. Location: Union City High
School, 430 St. Joseph Street, Union
City. Contact: Richard Maples
(517) 568-3497.
Students at White Cloud High School in White Cloud will create a visual tombstone
display on lockers to highlight the deadly effects of cigarettes,
decorate the stairs with tobacco statistics and take part in a
selfie campaign to show Big Tobacco that teens are "not a
replacement" for traditional smokers. Time: 11:45 AM. Location: White Cloud High School, 555
E. Wilcox Avenue, White Cloud.
Contact: Caitlin Schucker (231)
206-4616.
Students on the Teen Advisory Council at Arthur Hill High School, in collaboration
with Great Lakes Bay Health Centers in Saginaw, will educate their classmates on
tobacco's toll by creating a mysterious display of tobacco
statistics and facts on "dots" hung throughout the school. Time:
10 AM. Location: 3115 Mackinaw
Street, Saginaw. Contact: Rachael
Muex (989) 907-2728.
The University of Michigan
Smoke-free Ambassadors in Ann
Arbor will advocate to keep their campus air clean and
their community healthy with their Kick Butts Day event.
Ambassadors will chalk sidewalks with information on the harms
associated with cigarette and tobacco use and remind students that
the university is a "Clean-air Campus." Additionally, students and
staff will participate in "Butt Clean-ups" in hot spots around
campus. Time: 2 PM. Location:
University of Michigan - Central
Campus, 500 S. State, Ann Arbor.
Contact: Jason Golec (248)
259-0525.
All events will take place March
20 unless otherwise indicated. For a full list of Kick Butts
Day activities in Michigan, visit
www.kickbuttsday.org/map. Additional information about tobacco,
including state-by-state statistics, can be found at
www.tobaccofreekids.org.
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SOURCE Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids