In efforts to reduce student vaping, more than 250 schools in Wisconsin have installed vape sensors to detect the chemicals found in e-cigarettes.
The Beloit school district has installed these devices in three buildings since 2023, according to WMTV.
More than 30 of these sensors, which look a bit like smoke detectors, are now inside Beloit Memorial High School, including outside of bathrooms. When the alarms are triggered by a change in air quality, they alert security staff through a camera system, helping them to track down the culprits.
School district officials "were very well aware of this ongoing crisis of vaping in schools and in young adults and that age range," Ryan Turner, the school district's safety and security coordinator, told WMTV. "So it's no secret that use was very high. I have no doubt at all that use is now much lower."
Although marketed as a safer alternative to traditional cigarettes, e-cigarettes can have extreme health consequences. As the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention explains, many of these devices still contain nicotine, which is highly addictive and dangerous for pregnant women, developing fetuses, and youths, whose brains are still developing.
"Using nicotine during adolescence can harm the parts of the brain that control attention, learning, mood, and impulse control," the agency says.
Meanwhile, the aerosols from these products contain harmful and potentially harmful substances — some of them linked to cancer — that can be inhaled deep into the lungs by users, the CDC warns.
E-cigarettes and vaping have an impact on the environment as well. Disposable vapes contribute to plastic pollution, toxic e-waste, and improperly discarded lithium batteries.
Their vapors are also potent sources of air pollution, such as aldehydes, carbon monoxide, particulate matter, volatile organic compounds, heavy metals, and nicotine, one paper states.
When it comes to protecting youth from the dangers of e-cigarettes, Turner told WMTV that it's the district's responsibility to "use whatever tools we can to try to combat this.
TCD Picks » Upway Spotlight
💡Upway makes it easy to find discounts of up to 60% on premium e-bike brands
"Humans at that age are not quite capable of understanding the long-term impacts that something like this has on them."
|
Do you worry about companies having too much of your personal data? Click your choice to see results and speak your mind. |
Absolutely 👍 
💰Get TCD's free newsletters for easy tips to save more, waste less, and make smarter choices — and earn up to $5,000 toward clean upgrades in TCD's exclusive Rewards Club.
Cool Picks
