Teen intellect at risk

Nontraditional smoking—e-cigarettes, hookahs—is still rising among teens. As a result, efforts to reduce high school and middle school smoking are facing difficulties.

“E-cigarettes are now the most commonly used tobacco product among youth, and use continues to climb,” said Centers for Disease Control director Tom Frieden in a prepared statement on April 15. “No form of youth tobacco use is safe. Nicotine is an addictive drug and use during adolescence may cause lasting harm to brain development.”

A new CDC survey of teens in 2015 found e-cigarettes are the most used smoking product among teens.

That’s 16 percent of high school students and 5.3 percent of middle school using e-cigarettes.