Global smoking statistics

• About a third of the male adult global population smokes.

• Smoking related-diseases kill one in 10 adults globally, or cause four million deaths. By 2030, if current trends continue, smoking will kill one in six people.

• Every eight seconds, someone dies from tobacco use.

• Smoking is on the rise in the developing world but falling in developed nations. Among Americans, smoking rates shrunk by nearly half in three decades (from the mid-1960s to mid-1990s), falling to 23% of adults by 1997. In the developing world, tobacco consumption is rising by 3.4% per year.

• About 15 billion cigarettes are sold daily - or 10 million every minute.

• About 12 times more British people have died from smoking than from World War II.

• Cigarettes cause more than one in five American deaths.

• Among WHO Regions, the Western Pacific Region - which covers East Asia and the Pacific - has the highest smoking rate, with nearly two-thirds of men smoking.

• About one in three cigarettes are consumed in the Western Pacific Region.

• The tobacco market is controlled by just a few corporations - namely American, British and Japanese multinational conglomerates.

Youth

• Among young teens (aged 13 to 15), about one in five smokes worldwide.

• Between 80,000 and 100,000 children worldwide start smoking every day - roughly half of whom live in Asia.

• Evidence shows that around 50% of those who start smoking in adolescent years go on to smoke for 15 to 20 years.

• Peer-reviewed studies show teenagers are heavily influenced by tobacco advertising.

• About a quarter of youth alive in the Western Pacific Region will die from smoking.

Health

• Half of long-term smokers will die from tobacco. Every cigarette smoked cuts at least five minutes of life on average - about the time taken to smoke it.

• Smoking is the single largest preventable cause of disease and premature death. It is a prime factor in heart disease, stroke and chronic lung disease. It can cause cancer of the lungs, larynx, oesophagus, mouth, and bladder, and contributes to cancer of the cervix, pancreas, and kidneys.

• More than 4,000 toxic or carcinogenic chemicals have been found in tobacco smoke.

• One British survey found that nearly 99% of women did not know of the link between smoking and cervical cancer.

• One survey found that 60% of Chinese adults did not know that smoking can cause lung cancer while 96% were unaware it can cause heart disease.

• At least a quarter of all deaths from heart diseases and about three-quarters of world's chronic bronchitis are related to smoking.

• Smoking-related diseases cost the United States more than $150 billion a year.

(References: Worldwide smoking statistics [online]. Sans Souci, NSW: Think Quit; 2008 [cited 28 July 2010])

In general, people are more likely to be influenced by a persuasive appeal if they perceive it as coming from a spokesperson with whom they feel a sense of similarity.

When audiences identify with a spokesperson, they are more likely to accept that person's opinions and recommendations as credible and relevant to their own lives.Advertisers typically try to ensure that target audience members feel a sense of similarity or identification with the spokesperson by using a person that is similar to the audience in age, sex, race and/or lifestyle.

When advertisers court adolescents, they generally make a concerted effort to use youthful spokespeople who will be believed and respected by the youth subculture.Some cigarette advertisers apparently feel that it is important to use youthful spokespeople as well. According to studies, tobacco advertisers frequently violate their voluntary code to rely on models that look to be at least 25 years old.One study examined magazines that accept cigarette advertisements and are popular with 12–15 year olds (for example,Sports Illustratedand,People) and reported that four out of six cigarette models appeared to be under 25, with the median age being 19. Adolescents also reportedly prefer younger cigarette models.Often the implied message seems to be that, by smoking, they will become like the attractive young people in the advertisements.

Experts have opined that the Marlboro Man appeals to youth, despite his age, by symbolising autonomy and freedom from authority, two dominant developmental goals for adolescents.

If you choose rationality as an alternative advertising appeal type, would you expect rationality or a fear appeal advertisement to be more successful in persuading young adults to quit smoking or not to become smokers?

First of all we know that it depends of family , where we born

So, how to persuade children not to begin smoking?

Step 1

Tell your child you disapprove of smoking. You may feel like your child already knows how you feel, but it is important to state your feelings explicitly. According to KidsHealth, a parent's disapproval may prevent a child from smoking.

Step 2

Teach by example. Show your child you can live smoke-free. The American Academy of Pediatrics says that children of smokers are twice as likely as other kids to smoke.

Step 3

Start early when it comes to talking to your child about smoking. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention advises parents to start talking to children about the hazards of cigarette smoking when the kids are about 5 or 6 years old, and to keep talking all the way through high school.

Step 4

Give your child real-life examples of how smoking affects lives. Discuss how smoking impacts the overall health and physical appearance of family and friends who smoke.

Step 5

Emphasize the short-term effects of cigarette smoking when you talk to your child. Children may find it difficult to care about the ways tobacco impacts health as an adult but may not want to go to school with bad breath and smoker's cough.

Step 6

Talk to your child about the cost of smoking. Give examples of what types of toys and activities your child would have to give up to purchase cigarettes.

Step 7

Encourage your child to get involved in sports. Your child may not want to start smoking if it means sacrificing his abilities on the playing field.