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The problem

Now the smoking by teenagers is one of the most important problems of the society. According to the statistics tobacco using spreads very quickly. Every sixth boy and tenth girl under 18 smoke cigarettes.

People who start smoking as young teens are more likely to:

• Get addicted to nicotine (the young people are more sensitive to it).

• Become lifetime smokers.

• Get diseases caused by tobacco use.

• Die from a disease caused by tobacco use.

Who is at risk?

Some youth are at higher risk for tobacco use. For example, young people are more likely will use tobacco if they:

• Have access to smoking areas and tobacco products—especially to low-cost or free tobacco.

• Have friends, brothers or sisters who use tobacco.

• Watch movies that have smoking in them.

• Are not doing well in school or have friends who are not doing well in school.

• Are not engaged in school or religious activities.

• Use other substances, such as alcohol or marijuana.

Why are young people the industry targets?

Young people are a prime customer for tobacco products. With declining of smoking among adults, tobacco makers need to replace long-term users who have quit . . . or died. So the tobacco industry recruits replacement smokers from youth and young adults—the age groups in which 99% of tobacco use begin.

Smoking and Health: They Just Don’t Mix

It’s well known that smoking is bad for health and causes many serious diseases later in life. In fact, one of three teenagers who continue to smoke regularly will die from cigarette smoking. Tobacco using can develop smoking-related health problems, such as:

• Early cardiovascular disease.

• Smaller lungs that don’t function normally.

• Slow growth

• Memory impairment

• Reduced work

• Wheezing that can lead to a diagnosis of asthma.

• DNA damage that can cause cancer almost anywhere in the body.

Lifelong smokers get sicker and they die an average of 13 years sooner than nonsmokers.

Myth: Smoking helps you lose weight. Many young people, especially girls and young women, believe that smoking can help them lose weight. But studies show that’s not true—young people who smoke are not thinner than those who don’t.

Working together, we can end the tobacco epidemic.

But it’s going to take all of us—parents, teachers, health care providers, communities, schools, and policymakers—supporting policies, programs, and media campaigns that prevent tobacco use by youth and young adults.

Many countries have programs to prevent tobacco use by young people. The most effective ones are ban smoking in public places—such as workplaces, schools, day care centers, hospitals, restaurants, hotels and parks, restriction tobacco marketing work with young people in school, in health care settings, and in public places.

In happy families there are no such problems, because members of family understand themselves and adults set a good example by not using tobacco.

Live interesting life and make your spirit better!