Volume 67 Issue 10
thechaparral.net
December 9, 2019
Vaping crisis causes concern among students BY OMAR ROMERO STAFF REPORTER Vaping saw a sudden rise to popularity in 2010, and now it seems to have become a national crisis. Almost all multi-media platforms have some advertisements that warn their audiences about the dangers of vaping and encourage people to quit or never start. The controversy about vaping started when the original usage of e-cigarettes was misused. E-cigs were originally meant for adults who wanted to quit smoking, but younger people, who never smoked before, started to use them in record numbers. According to a Vital Signs report published by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) on Feb. 2, 2019, “More than one in four high school students and about one in 14 middle school students in 2018 had used a tobacco product in the past 30 days. This was a considerable increase from 2017, which was driven by an increase in e-cigarette use. E-cigarette use increased from 11.7% to 20.8% among high school students and from 3.3% to 4.9% among middle school students from 2017 to 2018.” The report was followed by another article that was posted by the University of Michigan’s Institute for Social Research that states, “Increases in adolescent vaping from 2017 to 2018 were the largest ever recorded in the past 43 years for any adolescent substance use outcome in the U.S. The percentage of 12th grade students who reported vaping
PHOTO COURTESY OF AP IMAGES Two women smoke cannabis vape pens at a party in Los Angeles on June 8, 2019. example is a product called nicotine in the past 30 days Boosted, which aims to give the nearly doubled, rising from taste of a strawberry milkshake 11% to 21%.” in e-liquid form, it was created E-cigs contain nicotine, a by Boosted E-Juice, a company highly addictive chemical that that sells vaping juices. can cause numerous harmful Rodman Swanson, a film health problems, especially major at College of the Desert, for younger people. In regular said, “E-cigs sounds kinda tobacco cigarettes, most of the like a toy and I don’t want to nicotine burns away when say that I know what vaping the cigarette is lit because the companies are thinking when tobacco combusts and turns to they make these things, but smoke; however, e-cigs retain some of the ways the flavors most of the nicotine because are named it kinda seems like the product comes in liquid it’s marketed towards kids form that turns to vapor when heated and the nicotine remains especially like some of the vaping equipment is starting inside the cartridge until the to become brighter and more user takes a puff from the colorful. It’s something that mouthpiece. kids can get into because it E-cigarettes can be appealing sounds like addictive legos.” because of their design. Unlike Elizabeth Goold, a registered regular cigarettes, E-cigs can be nurse and the assistant director sold in a variety of colors and of clinical services at College come with various accessories, the most notable being ‘flavors.’ of the Desert who oversees the functioning of the Student With the ‘flavor’ accessory, Health and Wellness Center, vapers can change the taste of said that the flavor adds to the vapor they inhale. A prime
the problem because it’s the nicotine that’s addicting, the flavor just gives a preferable taste. In regards to if the flavoring can be harmful, Goold said, “The problem with the flavoring is that a lot of these flavorings have been approved for consumption, like in eating, but what has not been studied or regulated is what happens to those flavorings when you heat it because when you heat something you change the formula of it. And so that is what now the Centers for Disease Control is looking at. They have found an additive called ‘Vitamin E acetate.’ In the patients that have died, or ended up in the intensive care unit from vaping, they’re finding that in their lungs they’re finding Vitamin E acetate and this is both with e-cigarettes and THC containing vaping products. Goold believes Vitamin E
acetate seems to be the cause of the vaping epidemic that can injure the lungs. “I think it is safe to eat, and Vitamin E is just a vitamin. But people put that into the oil so that it’s easier to vape it. But I don’t think anybody thought that when combusted, it would cause problems to the lungs. Inhaled versus eating are two very different things, and I think that’s what we’re starting to see.” The CDC reported on Nov. 5, 2019, that 77% of 2,016 hospitalization cases regarding e-cigarette, or vaping, product use associated with lung injuries, were under 35 years old, with a median age of 24 years and age range from 13 to 78 years (among 1,906 patients with data on age). And of that data with ages, 38% of patients were 18 to 24 years old and 15% of patients were under 18 years old. As of Nov. 20, 2019, 47 deaths have been confirmed in 25 states and the District of Columbia. College students are part of the target demographic, and several COD students, both vapers and non-vapers, explained why they made their choice when it comes to vaping. “I started vaping in high school thinking it was like the ‘cool thing’ and it turned into a snowball effect of me doing it every single day buying my own vapes,” said Kiana Sempek, a journalism major... Continued on Page 2
New Qless technology reduces student wait times receive notifications when it is their turn to go to the counter. Kristin Milligan, COD’s financial aid director, said, “The purpose of Qless is for students to be able to access the financial aid department and admissions and records department anywhere at any time so students no longer have to wait in line to come to our facilities. They can checkin to our system anywhere, check our wait times, be in class, go grab a bite to eat and be able to work with our multiple priorities that they are working with at the same time.” This new software is beneficial to both staff and students. “It’s really beneficial for students as they have the ability to meet with the financial aid department and PHOTO COURTESY OF THE CHAPARRAL ensure that there is no other COD student Christina Aguirre tries the new Qless technology located on the 2nd student standing behind them that all of their information floor of the Cravens Student Services Center near Financial Aid. is extremely confidential. It This system offers allows for a more studentBY RAMON RAMIREZ students a chance to sign centered experience. It also STAFF REPORTER in electronically and join allows for our office to a virtual line rather than The new Qless technology understand wait times and physically waiting for an system just introduced at the needs to staff our departments unknown amount of time. Admissions & Financial Aid for both financial aid and Qless also allows students to departments wave goodbye to admissions and records to receive wait time updates, waiting in long lines. insure that we have staff on manage their place in line and
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board that is here and able to assist our students at the college,” said Milligan. This recent Qless technology is something more colleges and universities are just now implementing. “Qless is a newer technology that California community colleges have just been now adopting. This type of software did not exist previously, and if it did, it was not utilized by colleges. We had an opportunity to bring on Qless, and when we heard about it, we took advantage of it to ensure success for our students,” said Milligan. So far, Qless software has worked fine since it has been introduced here at COD. “Qless has been working well with our students and staff. We noticed students already adapting to the new system,” Milligan said, “We have had staff members outside of our offices able to assist students with utilizing the process but we are already starting to see the message go campus-wide and students using the software right from the comfort of their own home.” The Admissions and Financial Aid departments
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have a head-start on this technology over other offices, but that soon might change according to Milligan, “We are looking at implementing similar products on campus for other departments at the Cravens Student Services Center. At this time, this is our phase one for the product, and we’ll see how well it works before we move it forward for others.” Third-year student, Christina Aguirre, agrees that this new Qless technology will benefit students, “It’s better overall; it relieves us from the frustration or anxiety we get from coming up the steps and seeing a huge line or a big group of students, and it is a relief not seeing that anymore. Also, we are able to walk around the campus, take a seat, read or work on homework rather than just standing in the line and wasting that time.” For more information about Qless, visit the COD Admissions & Financial Aid offices located on the 2nd floor of the Cravens Student Services Center.
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