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Many Factors Increase
Risk of Tobacco Use Among Children
Every day 3,000 youngsters become
cigarette smokers. Studies show peak ages for trying cigarettes and
tobacco products are in sixth, seventh, and eighth grades. Experts
agree that the younger a child is when experimenting with tobacco, the
greater the risk for becoming addicted to nicotine.
While the good news is that the number
of teens who smoke continues to fall, the 1999 National Youth Tobacco
Survey found that about one in eight middle school students have used
some form of tobacco in the past month. More than one-third of high
school students reported using some form of tobacco in the past month.
A number of factors seem to influence
whether an adolescent will use tobacco. These factors include peer
pressure, parents' attitudes, advertising, and the use of tobacco on
TV and in movies.
As part of a 1998 settlement, the
biggest tobacco companies agreed to stop advertising in magazines with
significant numbers of young readers. But, some companies say they
view the limits as "guidelines" and continue placing
cigarette ads in many magazines read by young people. The ads often
link smoking with rebellion. Given that adolescence is a time to try
out many risky behaviors, a link between smoking and rebellion can be
powerful lure for teens.
At the same time, cigarette use in
movies is on the rise. A team of researchers at Dartmouth Medical
School viewed the top 25 films for each year from 1988 to 1997 and
found that of the 250 films they watched, roughly 85 percent contained
tobacco use. Films, geared towards youth, PG-13, PG and G-rated films,
accounted for 60 percent of cigarette appearances.
What parents say and do also greatly
influences a child's decision to smoke. Among those polled in the
Who's Who Among American High School Students survey, out of the 68
percent who never tried smoking, most (86 percent) were told by
parents never to smoke.
Health experts agree that youth are
capable of making the healthy decision to avoid tobacco completely,
especially if they have positive relationships with parents and
family. Studies show that teens who feel loved and cared for by
parents are less likely to use tobacco. Parental presence during key
points of the day (after school and evening hours) protects against
tobacco use, and the risk is lowered when teens do not have access to
tobacco products at home.
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