21,000 Hawaiʻi youth, alive today, are projected to die from a tobacco-related illness…
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campaign!

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0
in 3
Hawaiʻi high school students
report using e-cigarettes
on a regular basis
Teenagers that smoke
or use e-cigarettes are
0
times
more likely to
be diagnosed with
COVID-19
0
%
of Hawaiʻi middle
school students report
using e-cigarettes on
a regular basis
0
%
of Native Hawaiian
youth use e-cigarettes

We need comprehensive regulations to prevent a lifetime of addiction for our keiki!

REAL TALK

High School Student, Hawaiʻi

“A lot of people my age and even younger vape. My little sister is addicted to vaping and it’s because of the candy-flavored liquids. She is only in the 7th grade.”

High School Student, Hawaiʻi

“…I know a friend who does vape but says cigarettes are disgusting. If all e-cigarettes had the same smell and taste as regular cigarettes, I truly believe we will have a decrease of vaping users.”

High School Student, Hawaiʻi

“…I often hear them discussing flavors, and it is a big part of the allure that vaping has. If you care about the health and well-being of Hawaii’s youth, please ban flavored tobacco.”

Flavorah, a US-based company that provides chemicals to the e-cigarette industry.

“The inhalation of flavoring may expose you to hazardous chemicals, toxins, and nanoparticles, including diacetyl, acetyl propionyl and/or acetoin, which have been associated with permanent lung injury and disease, including bronchiolitis obliterans, a disease characterized by inflammation and scarring of the small airways of the lungs, which leads to severe and disabling shortness of breath. Exposure to the aerosol can trigger, aggravate, and exacerbate various adverse health effects including but not limited to cancer, carcinoma, addiction, birth defects, heart disease, arteriosclerosis, liver and kidney disease, abnormal conditions, disorders, symptoms, and illness of the human body.”

Brian King, Office on Smoking and Health, CDC National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion.

“So a question you may also be asking yourself, is do we know why youth tobacco use is increasing. The answer to that is yes. As I noted before the advertising will bring a horse to water, the flavors will get them to drink, and the nicotine will keep them coming back for more. We know that exposure to tobacco product advertising and imaging through various media including retail stores, the Internet, television, and other sources can cause youth to start using tobacco products.”

Joshua Ching, Youth Council Member

“E-cigarettes, and flavors in both their normal and mentholated forms, have persisted as a disproportionately pervasive product in our Native Hawaiian community, specifically with Native Hawaiian youth, like me. As we garner greater awareness about the consequences of social inequities and the systemic imprints that have been made on the lāhui, there is an increasing burden to call the targeted marketing yielding a vaping epidemic what it is – an issue of social justice.”

Nikkya Taliaferro, Youth Council Member

“The Tobacco Industry disproportionately targets low income and black and brown communities through menthol products, advertising and reduced tobacco prices. These marketing disparities can only be solved through a restriction of the Tobacco Industry in our historically vulnerable communities.”

LEGISLATION

A COMPREHENSIVE BILL FOR THE PROTECTION OF PUBLIC HEALTH MUST MEET THE FOLLOWING

END THE SALE OF FLAVORED TOBACCO PRODUCTS
Appealing flavors are driving the youth tobacco use in our state. With thousands of kid-friendly flavors on the market and little regulation, the industry has no incentive to stop selling flavors like POG, Mauna Dew or Blue Raz Cotton Candy.
TAX E-CIGARETTES AS TOBACCO PRODUCTS
E-cigarettes are the only tobacco products without a tobacco tax. These products often contain nicotine, which is derived from tobacco. They are not approved by the FDA for cessation, and therefore should be regulated via taxation as a tobacco product.
RESTRICT ONLINE SALES TO TOBACCO LICENSEES
Age verification on tobacco retailer websites is insufficient at preventing underage purchases. Restricting online sales to licensed sellers will correct this loophole and allow the state to enforce current tobacco laws on minimum age and taxation.
FUND TOBACCO PREVENTION AND CONTROL PROGRAMS
Tobacco prevention, education, and cessation programs are critical to further reducing the burden of tobacco in our state. Currently, no tobacco tax revenue is allocated to tobacco prevention and control.
Resources
For Parents/
Teachers
For Youth

About The Campaign

It is no coincidence that the rise in youth use of e-cigarettes has been in conjunction with the explosion of more than 15,500 flavored products on the market. Tobacco companies have been hooking kids for years with enticing flavors, and now an entire generation of kids are addicted to flavors like gummy bear, “Maui mango” and “mystic menthol.”

Hawaii’s kids have paid the highest price for the industry’s aggressive marketing of these sweet, flavored tobacco products. As a result, Hawaii has the highest reported vaping rate among middle schoolers (17.7%) and the second-highest vaping rate among high schoolers (30.6%) in the nation.

These flavored tobacco products, along with the lack of regulation, have undermined public health’s successful efforts to reduce youth tobacco use; 81 percent of kids who have used tobacco started with a flavored product, and over half of youth smokers use menthol cigarettes.

To combat this problem, a coalition of more than 200 organizations, community leaders, and advocates are working to reverse this alarming trend.We know what works to reduce youth tobacco use – we did it before with cigarettes. Comprehensive policies, as well as investments in tobacco prevention, education, and cessation programs, brought Hawaii’s adult and youth smoking rates to record lows.  We don’t need to reinvent the wheel – by applying the same tobacco prevention and control policies to e-cigarettes, we can end the youth vaping epidemic.

 news
Facts the Tobacco Industry Doesn’t Want You to Know

FOLLOW US ON INSTAGRAM

partial list of supporters

Updated 04/27/2023

Health Organizations

‘Ohana Health Plan
Adventist Health – Castle
Aloha Care
AMA/HMA Student Chapter at JABSOM
American Academy of Pediatrics – Hawaii Chapter
American Heart Association
American Lung Association
Bay Clinic Inc.
Blue Zones Project
Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids
Coalition for a Drug-Free Hawaii
Coalition for a Tobacco-Free Hawai‘i a program of Hawai‘i Public Health Institute
Hamakua Kohala Health Centers
Hawaii – American Nurses Association (Hawaii-ANA)
Hawaii COPD Coalition
Hawaii Dental Hygienists’ Association
Hawaii Health and Harm Reduction Center
Hawai‘i Nurses’ Association OPEIU Local 50
Hawaii Public Health Association
Hui No Ke Ola Pono
Hui Ola Pono (UH Public Health’s Student Organization)
Kaho’omiki; Hawaii Council of Physical Activity and Nutrition
Kauai Rural Health Association
Keiki Injury Prevention Coalition
Na Lei Wili Area Health Education Center, Inc.
The Queen’s Health Systems
Tobacco Prevention Project, Daniel K. Inouye College of Pharmacy
University of Hawaii Student Health Advisory Council
US COPD Coalition
Waimānalo Health Center

HEALTH & COMMUNITY LEADERS

Kathryn Akioka, RRT / TTS
Joy Barua
Forrest Batz, PharmD
Frank Baum, MD
Deborah Bond-Upson
Dale Carstensen
Valerie Chang
Dyson Chee
Danelle Cheng
Bridgitte Daniel
May Rose Dela Cruz, DrPH
Andrew Fox, MD
Shani Gacayan
Donita Garcia
Asaka Herman
Pedro Haro, MPH
Cyd Hoffeld
Colleen Inouye, MD
Lila Johnson
Leilani Kailiawa
Lehua Kaulukukui
Ken Kozuma
Mark Levin
Loren Lindborg
Katherine May, PsychD
Bryan Mih, MD
Kristin Mills
Shelly Ogata
Gregg Pacilio, PT
Matthew Prellberg
Jordan Ragasa
Nathalie Razo
Keenan Reader
Crystal Robello
Kimberly Golis-Robello
Mary Santa Maria
Patty Kahanamoku-Teruya
Chien-Wen Tseng, MD
John A Hau’oli Tomoso
Jennifer Valera
Cecilia Villafuerte
Linda Weiner, MD
Andre Weston, MDiv
Matthew Wong

Youth and Community Organizations

After-School All-Stars Hawaii
American Youth Soccer Organization (AYSO)
Association of Hawaiian Civic Clubs
Bad Boys Football Club
Big Island Interscholastic Federation (BIIF)
Hale ‘Ōpio Kaua’i Inc.
Hawaii Children’s Action Network
Hawaii Interscholastic Athletic Directors Association
Hawaii State Commission on Fatherhood
Hawaii State Teachers Association (HSTA)
Hawaiʻi Youth Climate Coalition
Hawaii Youth Services Network
Honolulu Youth Commision
Kanu o ka ʻĀina Learning Ohana (KALO)
Kauai Path Inc.
LearningBond
Pacific American Foundation
Parents for Public Schools of Hawai’i
Partners in Development Foundation
Residential Youth Services & Empowerment (RYSE)
The Friends of Kamalani and Lydgate Park
Waipahu Intermediate Youth For Safety

Businesses

Country Courier, LLC
Hana Lima Physical Therapy
Home Remedies Interior Design
JCS Enterprises Inc.
Pediatric Therapies Hawaii

Neighborhood Boards

Kuliouou-Kalani Iki Neighborhood Board 02
Kaimuki Neighborhood Board 04
Diamond Head Neighborhood Board 05
Palolo Neighborhood Board 06
McCully-Moiliili Neighborhood Board 08
Makiki-Tantalu Neighborhood Board 10
Ala Moana/Kakaako Neighborhood Board 11
Nuuanu/Punchbowl Neighborhood Board 12
Downtown-Chinatown Neighborhood Board 13
Liliha/Puunui/Alewa Neighborhood Board 14
Aliamanu-Salt Lake Neighborhood Board 18
Aiea Neighborhood Board 20
Pearl City Neighborhood Board 21
Waipahu Neighborhood Board 22
Ewa Neighborhood Board 23
Mililani-Waipio Neighborhood Board 25
North Shore Neighborhood Board 27
Koolauloa Neighborhood Board 28
Kahaluu Neighborhood Board 29
Kaneohe Neighborhood Board 30
Kailua Neighborhood Board 31
Waimanalo Neighborhood Board 32
Mililani Mauka- Launani Valley Neighborhood Board 35
Nanakuli-Maili Neighborhood Board 36

Schools

Damien Memorial School
Hawaii Association of Independent Schools (HAIS)
Hawaii Council of Private Schools (HCPS)
Holy Family Catholic Academy
Island Pacific Academy
Maryknoll School
Maui Preparatory Academy
Mid-Pacific Institute

Roots School
St. Andrew’s Schools
Saint Louis School