Youth tobacco use in Southern Nevada is surging, fueled by the rising popularity of electronic cigarettes — a trend that has compelled the Southern Nevada Health District to declare youth vaping a “serious public health concern.”

The e-cigarette and vape boom of the past decade has led to an increase in youth initiation of tobacco use, said Cassandra Meraz, a health educator with the health department’s Tobacco Control Program.

In Nevada, vaping among middle-school students has risen from about 13% in 2021 to nearly 16% in 2023. The 2023 Nevada Youth Risk Behavior Survey — a confidential, anonymous survey conducted randomly in middle- and high school classrooms statewide — found that approximately 1 in 6 middle-school students have tried e-cigarettes at least once.

The trend was differe

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