Vaping, Bullying Detailed In Fairfax County Youth Survey Results

FAIRFAX, VA — The newest Fairfax County Youth Survey results shows an increase in vaping, stress and depressive symptoms and decrease in bullying among students. The survey looks at behaviors, experiences, and other factors that can impact the health and wellbeing of Fairfax Counth youth. The county's Board of Supervisors and School Board have sponsored the survey since 2001 to identify priorities for prevention efforts.

The anonymous and voluntary survey was given to 8th, 10th and 12th grade students in November 2018. The survey saw 32,904 students participate.

Nationwide, hospitalizations and six confirmed deaths as a result of vaping-related illness has spurred conversations about the safety of vaping among kids. Among the surveyed Fairfax County students, 27.9 percent said they've vaped at least once. The 19.8 percent who said they vaped within the last 30 days is up from 9.7 percent in last year’s survey.

Marijuana and cigarette use was lower among survey participants. The survey found 17.4 percent used marijuana at least once and 9.4 percent smoked cigarettes at least once. The lifetime use rate for cigarettes was the lowest reported in the past nine years of the survey. Surveyed Fairfax County youth were more likely than their peers nationally to report vaping nicotine and marijuana in the past month.

Another takeaway was that while reports of bullying are down, stress and depressive symptoms are increasing among students. The 4.2 percent who said they've bullied someone at school is slightly down from 4.9 percent in 2017. Students who said they were bullied on school property made up 11.6 percent compared to 13.2 percent the previous year. The survey found 9.1 percent had been cyberbullied in the last year, down from 10.9 percent.

In the mental health category, 36.6 percent of respondents reported a high level of stress within the last month, slightly up from 36.2 percent in 2017. The survey found 28.3 percent of students felt sad or hopeless in the past year.

Full survey results are available here.