OLYMPIA – The Washington State Department of Health announced a new smartphone app on Sept. 30 to help teens and young adults quit vaping.
Developed collaboratively with 2Morrow Inc., the app is available for free to Washingtonians at doh.wa.gov/quit and is accessible via smartphone, tablet, laptop, and desktop computer.
The self-guided program includes 10 short lessons, advanced messaging protocols, and customized tips. Participants learn how to deal with unhelpful thoughts, urges and cravings, and practice moving toward their goal of reducing or quitting vaping. Along the way, they receive daily text-based messages and have the ability to track their progress.
According to the Washington State Healthy Youth Survey, approximately 30 percent of high school seniors used vapor products in 2018. Many teens don’t perceive health risks from vaping, nor the difficulty of quitting once addicted.
“This app is a promising resource to help tackle the youth vaping epidemic in our state,” said Dr. Kathy Lofy, state health officer. “By making tools to quit accessible via smartphone and computer, our hope is that more young people feel empowered to quit vaping.”