Preventing electronic cigarettes from entering schools

Along with traditional cigarettes, recently, new  cigarette products have appeared on the market, causing negative effects on the behavior, lifestyle, and health of young people. Faced with that situation, the provincial education sector has implemented many propaganda measures to prevent cigarettes and new cigarette from entering schools.

Students at Hoang Van Thu High School participate in extracurricular activities to learn about the harmful effects of cigarettes

With diverse designs, attractive scents, and affordable prices, electronic cigarettes, heated cigarettes, and shisha are increasingly attracting young people and students. Although there are no statistics on the number of students smoking e-cigarettes in the province, according to incomplete records from the authorities, from 2022 until now, Lang Son General Hospital has received at least 5 cases of student patients hospitalized due to Nicotine poisoning after smoking e-cigarettes. The above reality requires attention to propaganda, education, and student management from both families and schools, according to research, to strengthen propaganda to prevent new cigarettes from entering schools, the provincial education department has directed, instructed units and schools to focus on propaganda to raise awareness for students about the harmful effects of cigarettes, especially new cigarettes and e-cigarettes, on human health; integrate propaganda about the harmful effects of cigarettes into subjects during the school year such as: Citizenship education, Biology, class activities, union activities for students; integrated into council meetings, party cell activities, and union activities for teachers and staff.

An extracurricular hour for Viet Bac High School students to learn about legal knowledge about preventing social evils

Following the direction of the industry, every year 100% of units and schools have implemented propaganda about the harmful effects of cigarette to all teachers, staff and students. The number of propaganda sessions per year is over 550 times, with over 140,000 teachers and students participating. At propaganda sessions, the school disseminated and thoroughly grasped the Law on preventing and controlling the harmful effects of cigarette to all students and teachers; Buying, selling, advertising, marketing of cigarette-related products and images is strictly prohibited in schools. In addition, for high schools, many schools also maintain the operation of denunciation mailboxes, security camera systems, and red flag teams to promptly detect violations and take decisive measures.

Teacher Tran Anh Quyen, Principal of Luong Van Tri High School, Van Quan district said: This school year, the school has more than 900 students and 68 teachers. Since the beginning of the school year, the school has organized 2 extracurricular sessions integrating propaganda on preventing and combating the harmful effects of cigarettes and e-cigarettes for both students and teachers; At the same time, teachers are required to integrate propaganda on cigarette harm prevention and control into subjects… Thereby, contributing to improving the effectiveness of the school’s propaganda work on preventing and combating the harmful effects of cigarette. From the beginning of the 2023 – 2024 school year until now, the school has not detected any students smoking e-cigarettes.

Not only do they spread word-of-mouth propaganda, schools also implement propaganda on school information pages and social networks. From the 2021 – 2022 school year to now, each year there are an average of 120 propaganda articles on school and industry websites and over 450 propaganda banners and slogans. In particular, schools also organize teachers to sign a commitment to “no smoking on school grounds” with over 20,000 teachers and employees/year; the number of students signing a commitment to “no smoking” in school is over 75,000 people/year (mainly at middle and high school levels,  professional schools).

Do Minh Hieu, class 12A, Dinh Lap High School, Dinh Lap district said: While studying at school, in addition to studying, I can also participate in extracurricular activities, propagate the law and propagate the prevention of harmful effects of cigarette. Through that, I have a better understanding of the harmful effects of smoking on health. At the same time, I know how to prevent and avoid the harmful effects of cigarette. I myself always actively participate in studying, training, not using cigarettes or e-cigarettes, and at the same time propagandize and encourage my friends and family members to do the same.

Through this, it can be seen that the dissemination and propaganda work on preventing and combating the harmful effects of cigarettes and e-cigarettes has been disseminated by the education sector and schools to each student and teacher. But to prevent cigarettes in general and e-cigarettes in particular from entering schools, in the coming time, schools will continue to strengthen, innovate, and diversify propaganda content, and closely coordinate with relevant agencies to propagate the prevention and control of harmful effects of cigarette, e-cigarettes, heated cigarette, and shisha in schools. Promoting the role and responsibility of each teacher and school employee in understanding the psychology, promptly detecting, supporting, and preventing e-cigarette smoking behavior of students.

Along with the above solutions, schools continue to coordinate closely between schools and families in propagating to young people about the harmful effects of e-cigarettes; educating young people to be aware of compliance with the law prohibiting the purchase, sale and use of cigarette products as well as practice life skills on health care, stay away from toxic substances, and refuse temptations. …

Doctor Phuong Van Huong, Head of Lung Disease Department, Lang Son Lung Hospital recommends: The smoking sustain of e-cigarettes contains nicotine and many harmful substances to the body that change the structure of the airways, reduce immunity, and make people susceptible to respiratory diseases and lung cancer. E-cigarettes use many flavors and chemicals, and can be mixed with different ingredients, so they are exploited to mix drugs and other toxic substances.