Area Schools Recognize Red Ribbon Week
Students at Culbertson and Bainville public schools paired school spirit with lessons about healthy choices during Red Ribbon Week, taking part in themed dress-up days and presentations about tobacco, vaping and nicotine addiction.
Tobacco education specialists Jessica Brown and AJ Allen visited both schools to help students better understand the risks associated with cigarettes, chewing tobacco and vaping products.
The presentations gave students an opportunity to ask questions and learn more about the products they may encounter, including how nicotine affects the brain and why addiction can be difficult to overcome.
Brown discussed research by Dr. DeNoble involving nicotine and rats, describing how the animals’ pursuit of nicotine interfered with basic behaviors such as eating and drinking, even when food and water were available.
“It takes 10 seconds for nicotine to get from the mouth to the lungs and finally the brain,” Brown said, emphasizing how quickly inhaled nicotine can reach the brain.
Students also learned about freebase nicotine, nicotine salts and synthetic nicotine, along with products marketed as nicotine-free. The discussion introduced students to terminology they may see in advertising or on product packaging.
Brown explored how tobacco advertising has changed over time, pointing to an old commercial featuring characters from The Week held on Oct. 26-31.
stones taking a cigarette break. The example provided a look at how familiar entertainment characters were once used to promote cigarettes and opened a discussion about the audiences advertising can reach.
The presenters also discussed traditional ceremonial tobacco used by some neighboring tribal communities, explaining its cultural significance and distinguishing those practices from commercial tobacco use.
Throughout the presentations, students asked questions that prompted further conversation, giving Brown and Allen opportunities to address their curiosity and expand on the information shared.
The educational visits were part of a week of activities that brought students together around Red Ribbon Week’s prevention message. Themed dress-up days added a spirited element to the observance, with students encouraged to wear red on the day of the assembly.
Between colorful outfits, thoughtful questions and conversations about tobacco and nicotine, students at both schools had opportunities to show their school spirit while learning information to help guide healthy choices.
