Today, the City of Jacksonville announced its partnership with Daily’s to raise awareness of the increasing danger posed to teens from vaping. Daily’s, a Jacksonville based company with a longstanding commitment to children’s causes throughout Northeast Florida, is contributing $100,000 to the campaign. The City is matching the funds.
“Daily’s will always be committed to the safety and well-being of children and we are pleased to partner with the City of Jacksonville on this initiative as we deepen our commitment to youth-focused programs,” said Aubrey Edge, president and CEO of Daily’s. “It is vitally important that retailers, along with local officials, school administrators, parents, and our entire community work together to educate the youth in our community about the imminent health risks associated with underage vaping,” Edge added.
Jacksonville City Councilman Ron Salem expressed strong concerns about how many teens admit to vaping without knowing the health risks.
“I believe with the generous donation by Daily’s and a matching amount from the city of Jacksonville, we can implement a program that will educate teenagers and parents on the consequences of vaping,” Salem said. “This will hopefully lead to a decrease in use within our community and help solve this crisis.”
As the father of three, Mayor Lenny Curry said this campaign hits close to home.
“Our children face the temptation to partake in this dangerous activity every day. We must take action to help and protect our kids,” Mayor Curry said. “When Councilman Salem and Aubrey Edge came to me with their ideas to educate our youth about the dangers of vaping, I offered them my full support.”
In the coming weeks, the City of Jacksonville will issue a Request for Proposal (RFP) to solicit bids from advertising and public relations firms to create an extensive campaign with goals of reducing the use of vaping products among Jacksonville’s youth and educating them about the health risks.
“We know that an ad campaign and PSA by itself are not enough to combat the problem,” Mayor Curry said. “True success will also depend on the parents. I encourage them to get involved in this campaign.”
E-cigarette use by underaged youth is not only illegal, it can also damage parts of the adolescent brain that control attention, learning, mood and impulse control. According to recent studies, about 28% of teens self-report that they have used E-cigarettes or other vaping products. Young people’s brains are not fully developed and the use of nicotine at a young age can make it harder for them to concentrate, learn, or control impulses.
Significantly, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) reports that nicotine can even train a young person’s brain to be more easily addicted to other drugs.
Read the Mayor's blog post.