Vaping & Youth in Trinity County: Understanding the Challenge and Focusing on Community Solutions

Colorful and enticing, these flavored vapes highlight concerns about their appeal to teens, offering a range of flavors that can make vaping more attractive to younger audiences.

Teen vaping isn’t just a trend—it’s a growing threat, especially in rural areas like Trinity County. By combining local data with prevention strategies, we can move from concern to action.

How Big Is the Problem in Trinity County?

According to the 2023 California Youth Tobacco Survey (CYTS), our multi-county region that includes Trinity County (County Group A) reported:

• 16.4% of high school students used any tobacco product in the past 30 days

• 13.3% of high school students reported current vaping

Statewide averages were 7.3% for any tobacco and 5.9% for vaping.

(County Group A includes Del Norte, Humboldt, Lake, Lassen, Mendocino, Modoc, Plumas, Siskiyou, Tehama, and Trinity counties.) These numbers show that while overall smoking rates have declined, vaping continues to gain traction among our local youth—making prevention more important than ever.

Mental Health & Vaping: Why It’s More Than Just a Habit

CYTS data also shows that students reporting fair or poor mental health were more than twice as likely to use tobacco (14.8%) compared to those with good or excellent mental health (5.9%).

For some teens, vaping becomes a way to cope with stress, anxiety, or depression. Unfortunately, nicotine can actually worsen mental health symptoms over time—leading to a cycle of dependency that’s difficult to break.

What Parents & Community Members in Trinity County Can Do

Preventing youth vaping in our community requires both awareness and action. Here’s how you can help:

1. Open the Conversation, Early and Often

• Talk with kids regularly about vaping—not to lecture, but to understand their perspective and provide accurate, relatable information.

• Emphasize that vaping isn’t a safe coping strategy—it can make stress and anxiety worse over time.

2. Model Healthy Behavior

• Adults quitting vaping or tobacco send a powerful message.

• Show young people healthier ways to manage stress, like exercise, creative activities, and time in nature.

3. Know the Signs & Stay Vigilant

• Watch for unfamiliar devices, sweet or fruity scents, changes in mood or focus, or school reports about vaping hotspots like restrooms.

4. Stick With Solutions in Schools & Community Spaces

• Advocate for Tobacco Retail Licensing in Trinity County, which helps limit youth access to nicotine products and ensures better enforcement of age restrictions.

• Support strong school-based prevention education programs—especially those shaped by student voices and local data.

5. Promote Local Resources & Mental Health Support

• Encourage youth and families to connect with Trinity County Behavioral Health Services for mental health and substance-use support.

• Students can also reach out to their School Wellness Liaisons, who can connect them with on-campus counseling, peer support, and community resources.

• Share digital supports like the Soluna app, which offers free, confidential mental health tools and chat-based support for California youth.

• Promote quit-vaping programs such as Kick It California (call 1-800-300-8086)

• Youth can get involved in peer-support initiatives like the High School Connections peer-to-peer mentoring program.

6. Strengthen Community Presence & Messaging

• Join coalitions like PATH (Partnership in Action for Trinity Health) to advocate at school board meetings, health fairs, or community events.

• Support youth-led initiatives like Friday Night Live —when teens help lead prevention work, they become powerful advocates for their own health.

A Community United Can Create Change

With vaping rates in Trinity County still higher than the state average, we all share a responsibility to act. By addressing the connection between vaping and mental health, advocating for stronger policies like Tobacco Retail Licensing, and ensuring youth have access to trusted adults and resources, we can protect our kids’ health and futures.

Together, we can move from risk to resilience—creating a Trinity County where every young person has the opportunity to grow up healthy, supported, and vape-free.