COLORADO — El Paso County Public Health says the number of teens vaping in Colorado is double the national average, and the same goes for El Paso County.
"One of the best ways to combat that is with strong smoke-free policy," Dacia Hudson a program manager for the Tobacco Education and Prevention Partnership at El Paso County Public Health said.
A new law, which went into effect Monday in Colorado bans vaping in and near public places. The hope is that by limiting exposure it can reduce the number of teens vaping.
"Vaping has carcinogens it has a lot of different chemicals, and it is risky especially to youth," Dacia Hudson a program manager for the Tobacco Education and Prevention Partnership at El Paso County Public Health.
It's a sentiment, workers in the vaping industry agree with. Dutch Knudson manages Vape Connexion in Colorado Springs, he says teens try to get into his shop and he turns them away.
In some cases, Knudson says teens will call his store asking if they need an ID and he can tell when it's someone who's not of age.
With the new restrictions, equivalent to those of cigarettes, Knudson says it will make needed changes.
"I think they [cigarettes and vape devices] do fall well into the same regulations, until we do find more studies on the health effects on vaping on the long term it is a very good idea to take a safe approach to it," Knudson said.
The law also prevents businesses like hotels and restaurants from designating smoking and non-smoking areas. Additionally, the distance from a building where people can vape and smoke is 25 feet instead of 15 feet.
