You may be familiar with the term consent, or permission, for something to happen. People may give consent to law enforcement to have their home searched or give consent for a special medical treatment to be performed. However, many people struggle with understanding sexual consent. Most agree that sexual consent…
JUUL Accused of Targeting Teen Customers
JUUL is the most popular e-cigarette device among teens and young adults, but the manufacturer is under fire for marketing to underage users. Last month the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) began investigating whether JUUL was using specific types of advertising to attract teens, such as featuring young people—particularly…
Florence Still Poses Danger for North and South Carolina
Hurricane Florence landed in North Carolina on September 14, causing severe rains, catastrophic flooding, and mudslides. More than 1 million people were ordered to evacuate before the storm, but many chose to stay behind to protect family members, their pets, or their homes. Now officials are warning the Carolinas to…
Major U.S. Retailers Tighten Rules on Gun Sales to Teens
Gun control is a complicated issue in the United States. It’s illegal to sell firearms to anyone under the age of 18 or to anyone who has a criminal record, mental disability, or dishonorable military discharge. However, none of these restrictions are foolproof in preventing gun violence. Last week, several…
U.S. Students Rise Up Against Gun Violence
Last Wednesday, fourteen students, two coaches, and one teacher were killed during a shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida. More than a dozen others were wounded while trying to escape or protect their classmates. The Parkland students, who had practiced lockdown drills, barricaded themselves inside classrooms…
Vaping Isn’t the “Healthier” Choice for Teens
You may have heard that vaping is a less harmful alternative to smoking, and it might seem more appealing than cigarettes. But while e-cigarettes can help adults who want to quit smoking, they can have the opposite effect on teens and young adults. Recent studies suggest that young people who…
Fight Back Against the Flu
Health authorities around the world are reporting a record high number of influenza cases. The H3N2 strain, also known as the “Aussie flu,” caused a severe outbreak in Australia and spread to other countries, hitting especially hard in Europe and North America. How can you fight the flu? Doctors recommend…
Snapchat Leads to Felony Charges for Minnesota Teen
A fourteen-year-old girl used Snapchat to send a revealing photo to a boy she had a crush on. He took a screenshot of her Snap and sent it to other people without her permission. Now she’s facing criminal charges for distributing obscene material. If she’s convicted, she faces up to…
Happy New Year!
Many people use the New Year as an opportunity to think about the future and make changes in their life. The two most common resolutions are usually saving money and getting more exercise, but research shows that only about 8 percent of people are successful at making consistent changes. Instead…
Teen Smoking Drops to Historic Low, but Marijuana Use and Vaping Remain Popular
During the past several years, studies have shown that teens are trading cigarettes for marijuana and vaporisers. The latest Monitoring the Future survey, which tracks teen drug use, found that marijuana use among 10th and 12th graders has increased significantly for the first time in seven years. The authors of…