Highlights for Educators

Below is a short summary of what my comic book can teach students for teachers and schools. My comic book teaches the common reasons that cause teens to smoke or vape and resources to help them quit and or join organizations that fight against tobacco use.

Environmental Pressure:

If teens know someone who vapes, like a family member or friend, they are more likely to vape. Aria, was convinced in this comic book to start smoking because she had been exposed to it by her dad.

When someone is exposed to smoking, it gives the impression that smoking is okay, even if that person knows that smoking is not okay. For example, when Aria was debating whether or not she should try a cigarette, in her mind, her mom told her that it wasn't okay. Aria knew that smoking wasn't okay. But yet she tried it. Why? Because she was curious and her dad smoked.

Accessibility & Flavors:

Did you know that the #2 reason teens vape is because the wide range of flavors to choose from? The tobacco industry knows that teens love flavors like Pegasus Milk and Blue Razz- because they are interesting and exciting. In the comic book, Aria finds that she is intrigued by the range of vape flavors and becomes extremely addicted to it.

The comic book also shows how easy it is for Aria to get vape pens- her classmates were able to sell it to her because their older brother could buy them online. If you search the words "vape pen", they are easily found online and some online stores don't require people to verify if they are even over 21 when browsing (the legal age to buy a vape)!

Coping:

In the comic book, Aria is depicted as feeling alone and isolated because she doesn't feel like she could relate to anyone. She is coping from her parents' divorce, coping from her friends slowly drifting apart from her, and coping from failing in school. By smoking and eventually vaping, Aria can escape all the stress in her life and feel better about her "failings."

A lot of times, people when they are suffering, rather than talking to a professional, will cope by picking up a bad addiction. It is important to understand that vaping or smoking is not a way to cope, as it can actually increase mood swings and smokers actually become more irritable if they haven't had a cigarette or vape pen in a while, due to nicotine withdrawal.

Addiction Turns Biological:

As you smoke or vape more and more, you become addicted. A tobacco addiction is extremely difficult to beat because it literally changes your brain chemistry. Dopamine, something that you produce naturally when you are happy, now can be something that your brain depends on if you smoke.

Smoking cessation (quitting) is extremely difficult, and without support, only 4% of cessation attempts work. After a big event occurred, even after Aria realized out that smoking and vaping was really bad, she still needed to smoke and vape- because she was addicted. Smoking causes permanent damage in teens' and children's brains.

My comic book also has a total of 32 smoking-related facts and statistics within the story of the comic book, with an additional 6 facts in the last pages of the book. This comic book is very educational and can teach students more about how smoking and vaping will damage their lives if they start.

How to Share

> Share the link to this website to your students so they can download the book digitally or watch the adapted short film version. Once they read or watch the book, have them take the survey to measure the impact of the book for the author. After that, you could have a discussion about the book and smoking in general.

You can also download and print copies of a tobacco quitting booklet that the author made to share and distribute with your students. Click here to download and print. Make sure to remember to click on "flip on short edge" button and double-sided in order to get it to print correctly.

Discussion Questions Ideas

• What did you think of the book? After reading the book or watching the short film, would you still consider smoking or vaping?
• Tell me one fact you found outrageous while reading or watching Life in Smoke and why.
• Are any of you going to join organizations that fight against tobacco use?
• If you could change the story Life in Smoke, what would you change about it and why?
• Why does the tobacco industry target teens and what should we do about it?
• Did you relate to Aria's story in any way? If so, how did you relate to her story?