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For tobacco-free youth

(China Daily)
Updated: 2008-06-02 08:05

The fact that tobacco kills does not necessarily prevent many from picking up the habit of smoking because the harm comes long after. This is particularly true for teenagers. That may explain why "tobacco-free youth" was designated as the theme of this year's World No Tobacco Day on Saturday.

True, China's tobacco control is picking up steam with more cities, including Beijing, starting to ban smoking in public venues. But the fact remains that more youngsters have joined the rank of smokers and that their first drags on cigarettes have come at an even younger age. This has made the anti-tobacco efforts more complicated and harder.

A report released by China's tobacco control office suggests that the number of smokers between the age of 13 and 18 is estimated to be at least 15 million, which accounts for 11.5 percent of the population of 130 million in this age group. At least 40 million teenagers have tried cigarettes, according to the report. And, the number of those who tried their first cigarette before the age of 13 are found to be 15 percent higher than the percentage in the previous investigation. In addition, half of those youths who do not smoke are suffering from second-hand smoking either at their homes or public venues.

The increase of teenager smokers means much higher medical expenses for treating smoking-related diseases in 20 or 30 years. It also means more non-smokers will suffer from second-hand smoking, to which they will be inevitably exposed either at home or in public venues.

Youth is where the hope of a nation lies, and so is the prospect of smoking control. So it is important to shift the efforts of tobacco control from general smokers to the youth.

It proves to be very hard for an adult to give up smoking after being addicted to it for many years although he or she knows well how bad smoking is to his or her health. But for teenagers who have just picked up the habit, the remedy depends on how to make them believe that tobacco kills.

It is important to tell them of the dangers, but it is even more important for parents and teachers to set good examples for them. Teenagers tend to imitate what their parents and teachers do. If their parents and teachers smoke, their warnings on the harm of smoking will quite likely fall on deaf ears.

(China Daily 06/02/2008 page4)