Cuesta College Smoke Free

Free Help Quitting:
1-844-8-NOVAPE www.novapes.org

Smoking refers to inhaling, exhaling, burning, or carrying any lighted or heated cigar, cigarette, cigarillo, pipe, or other tobacco or plant product intended for human inhalation. This includes hookahs and marijuana, whether natural or synthetic, in any form. Smoking also encompasses the use of electronic smoking devices that create aerosols or vapors and any oral smoking devices designed to circumvent smoking prohibitions.

Electronic Smoking Device means any product that delivers an inhaled dose of nicotine or other substances through vapor or aerosol, simulating smoking.

Hookah refers to a water pipe and associated products or devices used to produce fumes, smoke, or vapor from burning materials such as tobacco, shisha, or other plant matter.

Tobacco Product includes:
(a) Any product containing, made from, or derived from tobacco or nicotine for human consumption, whether smoked, heated, chewed, absorbed, dissolved, inhaled, snorted, sniffed, or ingested. Examples include cigarettes, cigars, little cigars, chewing tobacco, pipe tobacco, and snuff.
(b) Any electronic device that delivers nicotine or other substances through inhalation, such as electronic cigarettes, cigars, pipes, or hookahs.
(c) Any component, part, or accessory of a tobacco product, whether or not sold separately.

Tobacco products do not include FDA-approved tobacco cessation or therapeutic products that are marketed and sold exclusively for such purposes.

Smoke, Vapor, and Tobacco-Free means smoking, the use of tobacco products, and the use of electronic smoking devices are strictly prohibited. 

E-cigarettes are not approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration as a tobacco cessation strategy. As an unregulated nicotine product, their use is prohibited on University property for the purposes of this policy. However, other forms of approved nicotine replacement therapy, such as gum and patches are allowed. “Unregulated high-tech smoking devices, commonly referred to as electronic cigarettes, or E-cigarettes,' closely resemble and purposefully mimic the act of smoking by having users inhale vaporized liquid nicotine created by heat through an electronic ignition system. After testing a number of E-cigarettes from two leading manufacturers, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) determined that various samples tested contained not only nicotine but also detectable levels of known carcinogens and toxic chemicals, including tobacco-specific nitrosamines and diethylene glycol, a toxic chemical used in antifreeze. The FDA‘s testing also suggested that ―quality control processes used to manufacture these products are inconsistent or non-existent. ("Summary of results: laboratory analysis of electronic cigarettes conducted by FDA," Food and Drug Administration (FDA), July 22, 2009. Click here for more information.

This policy applies to students, staff, faculty, visitors, and vendors. The smoke, vapor, and tobacco-free policy applies to all Cuesta community, San Luis Obispo, Paso Robles facilities, properties, and vehicles. 

No, smoking and the use of tobacco products including electronic cigarettes are not allowed anywhere on campus property. 

The adoption of a 100% smoke, vapor, and tobacco-free policy promotes the health and well‐being of everyone on campus, including employees. Currently, individuals who work in outdoor areas are not provided with the same level of protection to secondhand smoke as those working indoors. A 100% smoke, vapor, and tobacco-free policy provides equal protection to everyone on campus. Additionally, the policy may encourage people who smoke to quit using tobacco and will support those individuals who have quit using tobacco. 

A recent study published by researchers at the California Department of Public Health (CDPH) found that, just as in cigarettes, vape E-liquids and aerosols contain many cancer-causing heavy metals. While the actual heavy metals differ between cigarettes and vapes, each significantly increases the users’ overall cancer risk. Learn more...

Free online and telephone counseling for tobacco cessation is widely available in the United States. Online and telephone counseling has been shown to be effective in helping people quit tobacco. Click here for resources.

You can also click here to visit the SLO County- Health Agency Tobacco Control Program site.
Email:  tobaccofree@co.slo.ca.us

The California Department of Public Health, doctors, and health professionals recommend quitting all tobacco use because:

Smoking doubles your risk of developing respiratory infections.
Smoking doubles your risk of getting sicker from COVID-19.
Youth and young adult vaping is associated with 5-7 times greater risk of testing positive for COVID-19.
Learn the facts about COVID-19 and smoking and vaping from Dr. Elisa Tong of UC Davis here.