Natick is a test case for a program to help students suffering with nicotine addiction from vaping.

NATICK A new program designed to help students quit vaping is planned for Natick schools, and could eventually be expanded to all school districts in the state.

The program goes online in Natick shortly after Dec. 2, when middle and high school nurses are trained, according to Katie Sugarman, prevention and outreach program manager for the town.

Based on results this academic year in Natick, the program could be adopted by every school district in the state, said Caroline Cranos, training program director at UMass Medical Schools Center for Tobacco Treatment Research & Training, where the program was developed.

The town's students will have access to four visits with a school nurse, plus learn behavioral strategies to beat their nicotine addiction from vaping.

Calling it Quits: Vaping," is an offshoot of the UMass Medical School center's program developed in 2007 to help adolescents conquer their nicotine addiction from cigarettes.

Treatment, not prevention, is the Natick programs emphasis, according to Cranos.

Natick contacted the center last year, after officials witnessed some students struggling with vaping.

Thirty-six percent of Natick High School students report vaping in their lifetime, and 24% in the past 30 days, according to the 2018 MetroWest Adolescent Health Survey. In grades 7 and 8, the numbers are 8% and 4%, respectively. The School Committee is expected to hear those numbers at an open meeting next month, according to Superintendent of Schools Anna Nolin.

Twenty of the 29 cases of vaping-related lung illnesses in Massachusetts reported to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention are connected to THC, the chemical in marijuana that gives users the feeling of being high.

The Natick program is not designed to treat THC addiction from vaping, Cranos said.

We train people to treat nicotine dependence, Cranos said. However, behavioral strategies in the program could help students suffering with THC addiction, according to Cranos. They include helping a student understand why he/she wants to quit, tips to deal with withdrawal, and suggestions for activities to get one's mind off vaping.

Last month, Gov. Charlie Baker announced a four-month ban on all vape products to give public health officials time to determine a possible cause of the lung illnesses in Massachusetts.

Massachusetts has reported one vaping-related death, a Hampshire County woman in her 60s. Nationwide, 26 deaths and roughly 1,300 cases of lung injury were reported to the CDC as of Oct. 8.

No definitive cause of the illnesses has been determined, according to the CDC.

Henry Schwan is the health reporter for the MetroWest Daily News. Follow Henry on Twitter @henrymetrowest. He can be reached at hschwan@wickedlocal.com or 508-626-3964.

View original post here:

Vaping: Natick and UMass Medical School join forces to tackle addiction - Wicked Local Franklin