2022 - Session 2 Seminars

We live in a saturated information environment (infosphere) that has both positive and negative consequences for parsing facts from fiction. This is also true for scientific endeavors, including so-called tobacco regulatory science and tobacco harm reduction science. Unfortunately, the tobacco science infosphere distorts and obscures scientific realities, and it is not clear that conventional scientific processes and procedures are up to the task of sorting truth from falsehoods. I will discuss strengths and weaknesses of scientific peer review (publications and grant proposals), evidence reviews (quantitative, qualitative, authoritative), funding of research, and the role of science networks (e.g., societies). I will also speculate about ways to strengthen existing information systems as they continue to evolve.

Comprehensive tobacco control approaches, the continuum of risk, and chronic care models of treatment for tobacco dependence are all considered important foundational elements of a public health approach to tobacco control. However, how e-cigarettes fit within each of these elements and blend these “pillars” together, as well as across the full developmental life cycle of tobacco use, has been less considered. This presentation will focus on how “harm reduction” approaches can help fit across the continuum of youth to adults and across products, with an emphasis on key risk communication principles.

The priority remains to prevent teens from becoming part of the tobacco risk continuum but what should be done for kids that are already addicted? This session will explore:

•  FDA’s understanding of the mindset of susceptible teens
• What factors contribute to making them so vulnerable
• For addicted teens, why FDA encourages complete cessation while still noting that smoking combustibles is the most harmful way to get nicotine
• What federal resources can help roughly 2M addicted teens

Dr. Gray will offer insights based on clinical practice and research focused on understanding and addressing adolescent substance use. Amid a critical developmental window, adolescents are particularly prone to substance initiation and progression to problematic use. Clinical messaging to minimize substance-related harms in this age group presents several challenges. Overly simplistic messaging may be perceived as stilted and condescending, whereas overly complicated messaging may muddle critical information. Messaging specific to nicotine vaping requires nuance, especially when delivered in the context of general substance-related information. Dr. Gray will share perspectives on “planting seeds” of salient information in clinical contexts with adolescents, emphasizing thoughtful approaches to constructively inform adolescent decision-making.

Communicating the harms of nicotine to kids has been a core strategy to prevent youth uptake of vaping.  Jennifer Pearson will guide a discussion on the challenges public health professionals face when communicating the harms of vaping to youth in the real world. From government health messaging to working with kids in schools, this session will explore how to optimize youth education and communication to reach the right kids with the right message at the right time.

Discussion topics will include:

• Personal experiences working in youth vaping prevention and treatment – what’s it like out there?
• The real-world concerns that youth and parents have about vaping.
• Thinking through the “on the ground” concern that a relative harm message will encourage vaping.
• Deciding what to tell youth about nicotine vaping and to whom to deliver that message.
• People’s experiences as to how nicotine vaping intersects with mental distress, adverse childhood events, and other substance use.
• How to target adolescents at highest risk for negative health outcomes.

• Are we getting the right information to the right kids in the right way?
• Has the focus on nicotine over the harms of combustibles made accurate health communication harder
• Does current health communication reflect the real world and lived experiences of kids
• Does THR compliment or contradict the 3 pillars of the CDC tobacco control priorities– Prevention, cessation and smoke free environment