×

Public awareness campaign is launched to combat youth vaping

Gov. Kim Reynolds

Gov. Kim Reynolds, Iowa Department of Public Health, and the Iowa Department of Education launched a new vaping awareness and prevention campaign aimed at informing teens about the reality of vaping and its consequences, and helping parents know how to address the issue and protect their kids.

“As a mom, grandma and governor of Iowa, I believe we have an opportunity and a responsibility to combat the teen vaping epidemic,” said Gov. Reynolds. “By increasing awareness and education on the known risks of vaping, we can help prevent our young people from setting themselves up for a lifelong addiction to nicotine. Working together as a team we can address the issue holistically, and effectively reach teens and parents with the right information.”

“This campaign will reach both youth and their parents by encouraging young people to avoid vaping, and by supporting parents and teachers with information and tools to help prevent their children from using these harmful products,” said Iowa Department of Public Health Director Gerd Clabaugh.

School Involvement

“Schools play a critical role in this work because of the connections and relationships that staff members have built with students, families and communities,” Iowa Department of Education Director Ryan Wise said. “We must equip schools with tools and information about the vaping epidemic so that students are better prepared to make safe, healthy decisions.”

Digitalized Campaign

This multi-pronged campaign includes a fully digital marketing campaign with elements targeting teens and parents separately with unique messaging delivered through their preferred channels, including SnapChat, Instagram, Facebook, YouTube, Hulu and more.

The campaign will also leverage school nurses, teachers and administrators and ensure they have the tools and information to help educate students and parents.

Additionally, through already-existing state programs IStep and Your Life Iowa, the state of Iowa will provide a ready resource where kids and parents alike can get a variety of information for their specific situation.

With some brands, using just one vaping pod is the equivalent of smoking 20 cigarettes. These statistics underscore the need for a coordinated, multi-pronged campaign to address the vaping epidemic.