Science Take-Out Kits for Improving Environmental Health Literacy on Vaping

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ABSTRACT This supplement project will expand on our current STTR Phase I project in which we partnered with University of Rochester's Environmental Health Sciences Center to develop three Science Take-Out vaping education kits. Our vaping education kits involve students in using hands-on activities and real-life scenarios to investigate the harmful effects of chemicals used in e-cigarette flavorings and vaping devices and the potential contribution of vaping to lung disease. E-cigarettes are the most commonly-used tobacco product for both high school and middle school-aged students. Most e-cigarettes contain nicotine, a highly addictive substance. Nicotine is particularly dangerous to teens, because their brains have not fully developed. Nicotine can cause issues with brain function, leading to problems with focus, memory, and learning. This supplement project will develop and pilot test two new vaping education kits related to the biology of nicotine addiction and nicotine toxicity. During this supplement project, we will: 1. Collaborate with University of Rochester's Environmental Health Sciences Center to develop two Science Take-Out vaping education kits related to nicotine 2. Conduct focus groups for school-based and community-based educators to evaluate prototypes of the kits 3. Pilot test the kits in school-based and community-based settings These new vaping education kits will combine the ease-of-use features of Science Take-Out kits. The kits will use hands-on, scenario-based activities that increase people's awareness of the biology of nicotine addiction and nicotine toxicity and the health risks related to e-cigarettes use. The “lab in a bag” design of Science Take-Out kits will make these hand-on science activities easy, economical and convenient for educators to use in a wide variety of school-based and community-based settings.