Teens for Healthy Youth Educate Students at Bluffton Boys and Girls Club in Prevention Plus Wellness

Teens for Healthy Youth members educated about thirty middle school and rising 9th grade students at the Boys and Girls Club in the Prevention Plus Wellness SPORTS Program. Prevention Plus Wellness (PPW), an evidence-based program, encourages youth to engage in positive behaviors like sleeping 8 hours a night, eating healthy foods, exercising, and avoiding substance use. In addition, PPW challenges individuals to set goals for themselves to improve their health such as sleeping 8 hours a night, exercising thirty minutes a day, and surrounding oneself with peers who have healthy habits and do not pressure friends to use alcohol or drugs. THY members stressed that many teens choose to live a healthy lifestyle and avoid drugs and alcohol, and the perception that all teens use drugs or alcohol is not accurate. Teens for Healthy Youth plan to educate members of the Boys and Girls Club year-round in Prevention Plus Wellness Programs such as the middle school vaping program. Peer-to-peer education is a skill building component of the LowCountry Alliance for Healthy Youth’s 12-month action plan.