Summary: The 2024 Surgeon General’s report, “Eliminating Tobacco-Related Disease and Death: Addressing Disparities—A Report of the Surgeon General,” highlights the urgent need to address tobacco-related health disparities as both a social injustice and a significant health and economic burden.
The report emphasizes the critical role of social determinants of health in perpetuating these disparities and calls for upstream interventions to ensure equitable access to tobacco education and cessation resources. This aligns with findings from the 2023 Healthy Kids Colorado Survey, which revealed that 56% of high school students who use tobacco tried to quit in the past year. Additionally, nearly half of young people surveyed by the Truth Initiative have resolved to quit nicotine in 2025, underscoring a widespread desire among youth to break free from nicotine addiction.
We must acknowledge and address the barriers that disproportionately impact marginalized communities to capitalize on this momentum. Tobacco-free initiatives must be designed with equity, integrating culturally responsive education and prevention strategies.
One way to incorporate equitable practice in schools is to subscribe to restorative, non-punitive discipline for tobacco-related infractions. This means considering alternatives to suspension, which we know is correlated with involvement in the justice system, decreased sense of belonging at school, and decreased trust in adults.
Recommended For: All audiences, especially those working with youth.