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On this day, the dangers of smoking, using smokeless tobacco products and the dangers of exposure passive smoking has long been established and almost universally accepted. And while research on e-cigarettes and vaping is still relatively infantile, studies suggest that their use could lead to long-term health problems such as cancer and heart disease.
The Irondequoit Coalition Without Drugs has developed some strategies to encourage a drug-free lifestyle among young people in Irondequoit. One of our approaches is to work to prevent teens from acquiring addictive habits, with smoking and nicotine-based products being perhaps the most common. Today, we could see fewer teenagers smoking cigarettes, but the introduction of new technologies to absorb nicotine, an addictive substance, is among the new battlegrounds to prevent addiction.
City Council is considering legislation that would make all municipal facilities nicotine-free. This includes the City Hall campus, our parks, playgrounds and sports fields. As written, the bill would also apply to electronic cigarettes and vaping products.
This is certainly not a radical concept. Our school districts in the city are free of smoke and nicotine, as required by state law. In addition, state law already prohibits smoking or vaping on public playgrounds of the state. Nationwide, in October 2017, more than 2,000 university campuses were fully smoked and nicotine-free. Locally, the city of Henrietta in 2014 adopted a policy without tobacco for the properties of the city.
A public hearing on the bill will take place on July 17 at 19:35. We appreciate the residents' comments on this issue and the legislation can be found on the city council page of the city's website: irondequoit.org.
In the same vein, I was also proud to have recently supported a broad coalition of stakeholders to support a bill to increase the minimum age in Canada. Monroe County to purchase tobacco and nicotine products from 18 to 21 years old. years. This legislation was supported by the National Council on Alcohol and Drug Dependence and the American Heart Association, as well as several other grassroots groups. This is not a new idea, as more than half of the population of New York State lives in a municipality that has raised the age of purchase, including counties. of Albany and Tompkins.
forming. Some have argued that if someone wants to start using tobacco products, he has the freedom to do so. However, given the well-documented effects on public health of tobacco and nicotine products, as well as their role in discouraging a lifestyle without addiction, I believe that most people who become smokers Adults start to smoke before the age of 18. believes that it is more difficult for teens to acquire these products.
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