(Radio Iowa) – Iowa parents are being warned about how stealthy vaping products are becoming, and that they’ll need to be even more vigilant to prevent their kids from getting hooked. Michelle Gilbertson, a wellness education specialist at Emplify Health by Gundersen, says the makers of vaping products are targeting youth with fruity, cotton candy flavors and they know kids will want to try and hide those products from their folks.

State health officials say recent surveys find one in four Iowa high schoolers vape, and one in ten middle schoolers. Some teens can be especially good at hiding things from their parents, but Gilbertson says it’s tough to cover up the smell if they’ve been vaping in the house.

Some argue that vaping is a healthier alternative to smoking tobacco, but Gilbertson says studies are finding the negative health impacts are very similar.

Gilbertson says vaping can be especially harmful to young people.

Vaping has only been around 20 years or so, and she says the long-term side effects and health impacts still aren’t known. Emplify Health by Gundersen has clinics in Calmar, Decorah, Fayette, Lansing, Postville and Waukon, and a hospital in West Union.