Fewer high school students are smoking tobacco than ever before, but Florida and local health officials think they can get that number even lower — and they’re turning to schools for help.
According to an October 2024 survey by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 10.1% of high school students reported using any tobacco product within 30 days of being polled. That was down from 12.6% in 2023.
Youth tobacco usage has dropped consistently for the last 11 years — a drop that can be credited to strategies at the national, state and local levels.
These include price increases, mass media campaigns to educate youth about the harmful effects of tobacco products, and comprehensive smoke-free policies that include e-cigarettes.
A December 2019 federal law that made it illegal to sell tobacco products, including e-cigarettes, to anyone under 21, also gets credit for the decrease.
But officials think more can still be done.
“We have seen in the past that nine out of 10 cigarette smokers tried their first cigarette before they were 18 years old,” said Sonja Davis, the Tobacco Program Manager with the Florida Department of Health in Pinellas County. “Young people are more likely to take some risks with their health.”
Data from the CDC shows that just five years ago, when the FDA officially declared youth vaping an epidemic, there were 26% more high school students who reported using any tobacco products.
“With more than two million youth using tobacco products and certain groups not experiencing declines in use, our mission is far from complete," said Deirdre Lawrence Kittner, the director of CDC’s Office on Smoking and Health.
And if a young person is using tobacco, it’s most likely in the form of e-cigarettes.
The 2024 CDC survey found that one in 13 U.S. high school students reported that they had used e-cigarettes within the previous 30 days.
“No amount of nicotine is safe, and for many of our youngest Floridians, the first experience with nicotine and tobacco has been in the form of e-cigarettes,” said Laura Corbin with Tobacco Free Florida.
That’s why the Florida Tobacco Strategic Plan, an effort between tobacco prevention and control partners across Florida, is trying to lower the prevalence of e-cigarette use among people ages 11-17 from 10.6% to 8.5% by November 2027.
The work will include catered media campaigns and collaboration with K-12 schools to establish comprehensive tobacco-free school policies.
“Even the strongest policies have to constantly be reviewed to make sure that they are still effective and up-to-date and keeping up with some of the products that are available,” Davis said.
According to the Pinellas County Schools Code of Conduct, if students are found with any form of tobacco or vape product, they face a number of consequences, including diversion programs and suspension.
Other campaign methods outside of school policy are currently being used.
For example, Pinellas schools has teamed with Johns Hopkins All Children's Hospital for a Tobacco Clinic, a pair of two-hour online classes that occur each month.
Also, Students Working Against Tobacco, or SWAT, is a youth organization that has over 4,300 Florida students currently enrolled. The group’s mission is to de-glamorize the tobacco industry.
“When another student says it and hears it from their peers, it becomes a little more important,” Davis said. “When students hear it from other students, it really holds a little more credit.”
