Deerfield Parents and Guardians,
With the recent news of vaping related lung disease including seven deaths (https://www.cdc.gov/tobacco/basic_information/e-cigarettes/severe-lung-disease.html), I just spoke at School Meeting again about the dangers related to vaping and the use of e-cigarette devices. As I mentioned in my correspondence this summer, use of e-cigarettes (such as JUUL) and vaping by high schoolers is rising at an alarming rate nationally and, unfortunately, we have also seen this increasing trend here at Deerfield Academy.
I am writing to ask you to please reach out to your child in the next few days to talk with them about vaping. The following are some helpful websites that have information for parents regarding how to speak to their children about the dangers of vaping.
CDC: https://www.cdc.gov/tobacco/basic_information/e-cigarettes/index.htm
Massachusetts Department of Public Health: www.getoutraged.org
Parents Against Vaping and E-cigs (PAVE): https://www.parentsagainstvaping.org/
Thank you again for attention to this concerning matter,
Sincerely,
Bryant “Bear” Benson, MD, FAAP
Director of Medical Services
D.S. Chen Health and Wellness Center
Robert and Harriet Dewey Chair in Adolescent Medicine
Deerfield Academy
Deerfield Massachusetts
Phone: 413-774-1600 Fax: 413-772-1118