When Your Kids' Friends Smoke: Info About When & Why They Start
As the parent of one teenager and two almost-teens (12-year-old twins), I often find myself remembering back to what it was like when I was in middle school and high school. Our daughter, Brynn, is a freshman in high school and while she doesn't smoke (her great-grandmother died after a horrible battle with throat cancer, in which she eventually had to have most of her tongue cut out; and this seemed to have a profound effect on her attitude towards cigarettes), many of her friends do. Aidan and Shea are in sixth grade and I hadn't really started bracing myself for the subject in relation to their maturity yet. But yesterday, the boys came home from school to inform me that one of their good friends was no longer allowed to attend the upcoming sixth grade festivities, because his mother had caught him smoking, after stealing money out of her purse to buy the cigs.
My first reaction was that of surprise; but after I had some time to dwell on it, I realized that it might not be THAT shocking after all; and that it is probably not uncommon for a boy their age to try and find out for himself what the smoking fuss is all about. So I started looking into the statistics for initial exposure to the smoking scene and found out that each day, between 82,000 and 99,000 young people around the world start smoking and that the average age when they begin is thirteen. *
In 2007, the University of Florida conducted a study that was published in the American Journal of Health Promotion, in which they surveyed 7,795 adolescents in seventh, eighth, and ninth grades and found that 23 percent of the high-school age children considered themselves smokers; while 8 percent of the middle school students did. The percentage of girls who smoked was slightly higher in both age groups and many of them cited the initiation of a diet as a link to their main reason for beginning; believing that it would suppress their appetite if they smoked.
The Lung Association lists other reasons that kids begin smoking on their web site as:
- "My friends smoke."
- "I just wanted to try it."
- "I thought it was cool."
- "My parents smoke."
The page also states that one of the "biggest reasons teens start to smoke is peer influence. Over 70 per cent of teens say that having friends who smoke and/or peer pressure is the number one reason for starting to smoke."
Do you smoke? If you do, what age did you start?
Do you think that beginning at a young age makes it more difficult to quit if when you become an adult?
Photo by Subharnab
*The Lung Association, 2008 statistics
Thursday, April 16, 2009 at 9:38AM
Reader Comments (11)
I don't smoke, and after watching both of my parents die from smoking related causes, I never will.
im 19 i tried smoking when i was 17 mayb... n i hated it my lungs felt so dirty cuz i was never around smoke so i never did it again, n pbly never will.. now when im around ppl smoking i hate it.. it makes me sick, headaches, itchy nose n everything.. n hate smelling like it too..
When I turned 18 and was legally allowed to buy cigarettes, I bought a pack, smoked it (because I didn't want to waste my money) and didn't smoke another one after that.
One of my friends has been smoking since he was 15, and he tries to quit constantly, but it is a constant battle...
i started smoking on and off since maybe around 17
some days i dont smoke at all
some days one or two
and other days half a pack
=)
Hey Jinxi, it's your bro!!!! I had my first cig in 5th grade. Didn't really like it. Then again in middle school, and then it wasn't that bad. Once I got into High School I was smoking on a regular basis. And I have smoked off and on since then. Now I just smoke every once in a while. I've quit for years at a time. And after you have stopped for a couple of weeks it's not hard to be around people that smoke... and not want one. (Atleast it wasn't for me) But I will admit that now when I go out drinking... it depends on who I'm with on how many I will smoke. If they smoke I will smoke more. If nobody is smoking I usually don't have any that night. Anyways. I wouldn't recommend it to anyone now. IT COSTS TOO MUCH :)
I have heard a lot from my 13 year old daughter about kids her age smoking cigarettes....but even more so she tells me that several of them smoke marijuana. She is dead set against it....I am not against it so much for adults who make their own choices...but of course I am COMPLETELY against these kids clouding their little brains....and input on this...and the facts of it being a gateway drug?
I personally don't smoke pot. But I hate it when people compare it to a gateway drug. Smoking marijuana is nothing compared to doing real drugs. Example... Michael Phelps!!! He smokes it and he's the greatest olympic athelete of all time. I do agree that I don't think that kids that young should be smoking it. But I think that I should be legalized. They should sell it right next to cigarettes at the gas station. I bet a lot of people would stop smoking cigarettes. What all lot of your kids aren't telling you is that marijuana isn't even the choice drug in high school anymore. Having graduated from high school in 2001. Some of my friends younger brothers and sisters are in High School now. And from what I've heard from them and a couple of teachers that I have ran into in the last couple of years.... is that COCAINE is the drug of choice now for high school students.
I tried my first cigarette at the age of twelve, I hated it, but then again, it was a basic (yuck). My jr. year of highschool I joined the marching band, and the marching band is full of bad influenses. The crowd I fell into smoked marijuana, and drank. Then a few from the croud joined me and a few others that bairley joined the band towards the end of the year and became best friends. Infact we're all still best friends to this day, I'm 21, and they're like 19, 20. Back to the point, when we all found out we had all smoked before, we started smoking together. It was mostly "Black and Milds" a cigar that is pretty much the choice of tobacco for highschoolers. When I dropped out of highschool and got a job at wal-mart I started smoking full time, about a half pack a day. After I quit my job I had no money to support my habbit and now I only smoke on occasion, like when I drink and go out with friends. BTW, I don't think people will stop smoking if weed was legal, when my friends and I get together to get stoned, cigarettes only make the experience better.
i started at 18..smoking pot as well..i come from a family (dads side) with weak lungs;asthma,lungcancer..i stopped for about 6 years,in those years i had my babies. my youngest has asthma..we dont smoke in the house period. my boyfriend started at age 9,he smokes a lot..and i worry about that (a lot) i love smoking to be honest,but my lungs,simply cant take it anymore..so i hardly smoke. i would smoke when being in a cafe or concert at night with my (smoking) pals..but holland (my country) banned smoking in cafes (european guidelines)i smoke a little pot in the evening,but i have to quit that too..i know that part of the attraction in the first place was a deep fascination because my mother smokes..as a child i loved watching that,i didnt understood her saying;''its horrible,dont start smoking'' and yet she seemed to be enjoying it a lot..i m quite harsh towards my children about it..i tell my asthma child the concept of addiction and i tell her,that her lungs are so weak that if she ever starts smoking..not only will she has a hard time with quitting,but she wont live a long live..it seems to make some sort of impression i hope
yes it is harder to quit as an adult if you started early...i stared when i was 16...im 24 now, omg 2 more years and it woud be 10 years???? scary.but the good news? i havent had one in 4 days! im qutting, its been hard, but im doing it. the ones that dont smoke do not understand how hard it is to quit...but my mother has COPD, one of her brothers died when he was 18, he ahd a enphzema (spelling?) attack while swimming in a lake and her mother had a case of it as well...
im doing the healthier route, and i know this is something i can be proud of...and most of my appetite is back, may put a few pounds back on, but he thats what excercise and watching what you eat is for lol...
ok im rambling...bye.
When I quite smoking after 15 yrs it was very hard for me. But my allergies were acting up and the Doctor said my lungs weren't looking to good and he tried putting me on multiple medications to help out with the coughing and sneezing. After 5 months of quiting and dealing now with stupid allergies I decided to read up on ex-smokers care along with allergies and found "kiwi drug" news to be most helpful. I also found a cheap allergy spray called Flonase over the counter which i would help with my breathing and I must say it has done just like the box said it would :)