Suwanee Student Fights Against Tobacco Use Among Teens

SUWANEE — A Suwanee student has been named “Youth Advocate of the Year” by the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids. Vinayak Menon was honored Wednesday for his leadership in the fight against tobacco at the Tobacco-Free Kids’ annual Youth Advocates of the Year Awards celebration, according to a news release.

Menon said he developed a passion for tobacco control after seeing peers attracted to the tobacco companies targeting. The 10th grader began learning more about the e-cigarette epidemic and its impact on his classmates, according to the news release.

Seeking to take his advocacy work beyond his school walls, he hosted a community-wide town hall, “2021 Facts and Strategies Concerning Substance Use One Year into the Pandemic.” The event brought together members of his community to discuss mental health, substance use and prevention and the best ways to protect kids from a lifetime of addiction.

Vinayak also has advocated at the national level, speaking with policymakers in Washington, D.C. to support federal legislation to end the sale of all flavored tobacco products.

“We are thrilled to honor Vinayak as a Youth Advocate of the Year,” said Matthew L. Myers, President of the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids in a statement. “Vinayak leverages his voice to make a difference for his community, and his confidence and passion for advocacy make him an invaluable advocate. Young advocates like Vinayak are bravely standing up to the tobacco industry and leading the way to the first tobacco-free generation.”

In Georgia, tobacco use claims 11,700 lives and costs $3.18 billion in health care bills each year. Currently, 4% of Georgia’s high school students smoke cigarettes and 17% use e-cigarettes.