“They got lips? We want them.” – RJ Reynolds Sales Representative

 Tobacco companies develop carefully calculated media campaigns to recruit new youth smokers. Internal industry documents show that the tobacco companies have perceived kids as young as 13 years of age as a key market, studied the smoking habits of kids, and developed products and marketing campaigns aimed directly at them.

Specific Marketing Tactics

Point-of-Sale (POS) – Advertising displays where tobacco products are sold. 

“‘Eye Level is Buy Level’ because items placed at eye level are more likely to be purchased that those on higher or lower shelves.” —British American Tobacco (BAT), undated

 POS cigarette advertising increases the likelihood that youth will initiate smoking.

 POS exposes all shoppers, regardless of age and smoking status, to pro-smoking messages and imagery.

Sports Sponsorship

“We use sports as an avenue for advertising our products... 

We can go into an area where we’re marketing an event, measure the sales during the event and measure sales after the event, and see an increase in sales.” 

—Wayne Robertson, RJ Reynolds, 1983

 Sports sponsorship creates false perceptions about athletic excellence and smoking, especially among youth.

Brand-Stretching – Using tobacco brand names, logos, or visual brand identities on non-tobacco products, activities, or events.

“Opportunities should be explored by all companies so as to find non-tobacco products and other services which can be used to communicate the brand or house name, together with their essential visual identities…to ensure that cigarette lines can be effectively publicized when all direct forms of communication are denied.” —BAT, 1979

 Non-tobacco products, such as clothing or toys, affixed with tobacco brand names promote the tobacco product and increase brand recognition, allowing tobacco companies to circumvent traditional tobacco marketing bans.

Industry Sponsored Youth Prevention Programs 

“Our objective is to communicate that the tobacco industry is not interested in having young people smoke and to position the industry as a ‘concerned corporate citizen’ in an effort to ward off further attacks by the anti-tobacco movement.” 

—BAT, 1993

 Industry-sponsored youth prevention programs are created to improve the tobacco industry’s public image and discourage further tobacco control legislation.

 These programs are ineffective at best and, at worst, encourage youth to smoke.

A Comprehensive Ban on Tobacco Advertising, Promotion and Sponsorship is Necessary to Reduce Tobacco Use among Youth

 Tobacco advertising, promotion and sponsorship entice young people to use tobacco, encourage smokers to smoke more, and decrease smokers’ motivation to quit.

 Bans must address traditional and new covert forms of marketing in order to be effective.

 Only a comprehensive and enforced ban on advertising, promotions and sponsorships reduces tobacco use, especially among youth.

 Countries must adhere to Article 13 of the FCTC and adopt comprehensive bans on tobacco advertising, promotion and sponsorship.

Secondhand Smoke (SHS) Facts

Secondhand smoke is a mixture of gases and fine particles that includes—

• Smoke from a burning cigarette, cigar, or pipe tip,¹
• Smoke that has been exhaled or breathed out by the person or people smoking, and¹
• More than 7,000 chemicals, including hundreds that are toxic and about 70 that can cause cancer.²

Most exposure to secondhand smoke occurs in homes and workplaces. Secondhand smoke exposure also continues to occur in public places such as restaurants, bars, and casinos and in private vehicles.³

Health Effects: Children

In children, secondhand smoke causes the following:³

• Ear infections
• More frequent and severe asthma attacks
• Respiratory symptoms (e.g., coughing, sneezing, shortness of breath)
• Respiratory infections (i.e., bronchitis, pneumonia)
• A greater risk for sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS)

In children aged 18 months or younger, secondhand smoke exposure is responsible for—

• an estimated 150,000–300,000 new cases of bronchitis and pneumonia annually, and
• approximately 7,500–15,000 hospitalizations annually in the United States.⁴

Health Effects: Adults

In adults who have never smoked, secondhand smoke can cause heart disease and/or lung cancer.³

Heart Disease

• For nonsmokers, breathing secondhand smoke has immediate harmful effects on the cardiovascular system that can increase the risk for heart attack. People who already have heart disease are at especially high risk.^3,5
• Nonsmokers who are exposed to secondhand smoke at home or work increase their heart disease risk by 25–30%.³
• Secondhand smoke exposure causes an estimated 46,000 heart disease deaths annually among adult nonsmokers in the United States.⁶

Lung Cancer

• Nonsmokers who are exposed to secondhand smoke at home or work increase their lung cancer risk by 20–30%.³
• Secondhand smoke exposure causes an estimated 3,400 lung cancer deaths annually among adult nonsmokers in the United States.⁶

Estimates of Secondhand Smoke Exposure

When a nonsmoker breathes in secondhand smoke, the body begins to metabolize or break down the nicotine that was in the smoke. During this process, a nicotine byproduct called cotinine is created. Exposure to nicotine and secondhand smoke can be measured by testing saliva, urine, or blood for the presence of cotinine.³

Secondhand Smoke Exposure Has Decreased in Recent Years

• Measurements of cotinine have shown how exposure to secondhand smoke has steadily decreased in the United States over time.^3,7
  • During 1988–1991, approximately 87.9% of nonsmokers had measurable levels of cotinine.
  • During 1999–2000, approximately 52.5% of nonsmokers had measurable levels of cotinine.
  • During 2007–2008, approximately 40.1% of nonsmokers had measurable levels of cotinine.
• The decrease in exposure to secondhand smoke over the last 20 years is due to the growing number of laws that ban smoking in workplaces and public places, the increase in the number of households with smoke-free home rules, and the decreases in adult and youth smoking rates.^8,9

Many in the United States Continue to be Exposed to Secondhand Smoke⁷

• An estimated 88 million nonsmokers in the United States were exposed to secondhand smoke in 2007–2008.
• Children are at particular risk for exposure to secondhand smoke: 53.6% of young children (aged 3–11 years) were exposed to secondhand smoke in 2007–2008.
• While only 5.4% of adult nonsmokers in the United States lived with someone who smoked inside their home, 18.2% of children (aged 3–11 years) lived with someone who smoked inside their home in 2007–2008.

Disparities in Secondhand Smoke Exposure

Racial and Ethnic Groups

• Although declines in cotinine levels have occurred in all racial and ethnic groups, cotinine levels have consistently been found to be higher in non-Hispanic black Americans than in non-Hispanic white Americans and Mexican Americans.^7,8,9 In 2007–2008:
  • 55.9% of non-Hispanic blacks were exposed to secondhand smoke.
  • 40.1% of non-Hispanic whites were exposed to secondhand smoke.
  • 28.5% of Mexican Americans were exposed to secondhand smoke.

Low Income

• Secondhand smoke exposure tends to be high for persons with low incomes: 60.5% of persons living below the poverty level in the United States were exposed to secondhand smoke in 2007–2008.⁷

Occupational Disparities

• Occupational disparities in secondhand smoke exposure decreased over the past two decades, but substantial differences in exposure among workers remain. African-American male workers, construction workers, and blue collar workers and service workers are among some of the groups who continue to experience particularly high levels of secondhand smoke exposure relative to other workers.¹⁰

References

1. National Toxicology Program. Report on Carcinogens, Twelfth Edition .
   (PDF–1.5 MB) Research Triangle Park (NC): U.S. Department of Health and Human Sciences, National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, National Toxicology Program, 2011 [accessed 2012 Mar 1].
2. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. A Report of the Surgeon General: How Tobacco Smoke Causes Disease: What It Means to You. Atlanta: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion, Office on Smoking and Health, 2010 [accessed 2011 Mar 11].
3. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. The Health Consequences of Involuntary Exposure to Tobacco Smoke: A Report of the Surgeon General. Atlanta: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Coordinating Center for Health Promotion, National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion, Office on Smoking and Health, 2006 [accessed 2011 Mar 11].
4. United States Environmental Protection Agency. Respiratory Health Effects of Passive Smoking: Lung Cancer and Other Disorders . (PDF–3.90 MB). Washington: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Office of Research and Development, Office of Health and Environmental Assessment, 1992 [accessed 2011 Mar 11].
5. Institute of Medicine. Secondhand Smoke Exposure and Cardiovascular Effects: Making Sense of the Evidence (PDF–93.63 KB). Washington: National Academy of Sciences, Institute of Medicine, 2009 [accessed 2011 Mar 11].
6. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Smoking-Attributable Mortality, Years of Potential Life Lost, and Productivity Losses—United States, 2000–2004. Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report 2008;57(45):1226–8 [accessed 2011 Mar 11].
7. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Vital Signs: Nonsmokers' Exposure to Secondhand Smoke—United States, 1999–2008. Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report 2010;59(35):1141–6 [accessed 2011 Mar 11].
8. Pirkle JL, Bernert JT, Caudill SP, Sosnoff CS, Pechacek TF. Trends in the Exposure of Nonsmokers in the U.S. Population to Secondhand Smoke: 1988–2002 . Environmental Health Perspectives 2006;114(6):853–8 [accessed 2011 Mar 11].
9. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Fourth National Report on Human Exposure to Environmental Chemicals . (PDF–1.7 MB) Atlanta: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Environmental Health, 2009 [accessed 2011 Mar 11].
10. Arheart KL, Lee DJ, Dietz NA, Wilkinson JD, Clark III JD, LeBlanc WG, Serdar B, Fleming LE.Declining Trends in Serum Cotinine Levels in U.S. Worker Groups: The Power of Policy. Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine 2008;50(1):57–63 [cited 2011 Mar 11].

For Further Information

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion
Office on Smoking and Health
E-mail: tobaccoinfo@cdc.gov
Phone: 1-800-CDC-INFO

Media Inquiries: Contact CDC's Office on Smoking and Health press line at 770-488-5493.

Not Your Grandfather's Cigar

A New Generation of Cheap and Sweet Cigars Threatens a New Generation of Kids

Report Released March 13, 2013

While cigarette smoking has been declining in the United States, cigar sales have more than doubled since 2000, driven by an explosion of cheap, sweet small cigars that entice kids, according to a report released by the Campaign for Tobacco-Free kids.

National surveys show high school students are twice as likely as adults – 13.1 percent compared to 6.6 percent – to report smoking cigars in the past month, and young adults (ages 18-24) smoke cigars at even higher rates (15.9 percent).

Tobacco companies have manipulated their products to evade regulations and higher taxes aimed at reducing smoking, especially among kids.

Under a landmark 2009 law, the Food and Drug Administration banned candy and fruit-flavored cigarettes.  However, because the FDA does not currently regulate cigars, tobacco companies continue to market similarly flavored cigars. Some companies have modified their flavored cigarettes to meet the legal definition of cigars (e.g., by adding tobacco to the wrapper) and continued to market them with sweet flavors.

When another 2009 federal law significantly increased taxes on cigarettes and small cigars, but taxed larger cigars at lower rates, some manufacturers added weight to their products to qualify for the lower tax rate. According to a recent Bloomberg News report, one manufacturer has increased the weight of its cigars by adding a clay material used in kitty litter.

The report calls for closing these regulatory and tax loopholes:

• The FDA, which currently regulates cigarettes, smokeless tobacco and roll-your-own tobacco, should extend its jurisdiction to all tobacco products, including cigars, as allowed by law.

• Congress and the states should equalize taxes on all tobacco products at the same rate as cigarettes to eliminate incentives for tax evasion.

• Congress should reject pending legislation that would totally exempt some cigars from regulation.

Key Findings of the Report

• While cigarettes sales have been declining in the U.S., cigar sales have increased significantly.  Between 2000 and 2012, cigar sales in the U.S. more than doubled – from six billion to more than 13 billion cigars a year.  During the same period, cigarette sales declined by 33.8 percent.

• The surge in cigar sales has been driven by a dramatic increase in the number and types of smaller cigar products, many of which are flavored, priced and packaged to appeal to young people.  Cigars today are no longer just the “big stogies” smoked by older men.  Instead, the cigar market consists of products that vary widely in sizes, shapes, flavors and prices, making them appealing to a broader audience, including kids.

• High school students and young adults smoke cigars at twice the rates of all adults.  According to the national 2011 Youth Risk Behavior Survey, 13.1 percent of all high school students and 17.8 percent of high school boys smoked cigars in the past month. In contrast, the most recent national survey of adult cigar use (for 2009-2010) showed that 6.6 percent of all adults smoked cigars in the past month.  Young adults (ages 18-24) have the highest cigar smoking rate at 15.9 percent.

• In at least six states – Florida, Georgia, Maryland, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and Wisconsin – youth cigar smoking now equals or surpasses cigarette smoking.

• Flavored cigars are the most popular among youth.  The most popular cigar brands among youth – including top three brands Black & Mild, Swisher Sweets and White Owl – come in a wide variety of flavors.  Flavors include peach, strawberry, chocolate, grape, blueberry, wild apple, pineapple and watermelon.  Some cigars also have flavor-oriented names, such as “Da Bomb Blueberry” and “Banana Split,” with obvious appeal to kids.

• Cigar smoking harms health.  According to the National Cancer Institute and the U.S. Surgeon General, cigar smoking causes cancer, heart disease and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).  Cigar smoke contains the same toxins as cigarette smoke, and many new cigar products are more easily smoked and inhaled just like cigarettes.

New Legacy and Seventeen Magazine Survey Reveals Surprising Results

 Washington, D.C. – Nearly one-in-ten teen girls in the United States are current smokers, but a majority of them want to quit, according to a new survey conducted by Legacy and Seventeen magazine. Researchers from Legacy – best known for the truth® youth smoking prevention campaign – surveyed teen girls on their behavior, attitudes and opinions about quitting smoking and found that 70 percent who smoke want to quit. According to the data, almost 60 percent have tried to quit, but less than half were successful. The results of the survey were highlighted in the November issue of Seventeenmagazine.

“The smoking epidemic is a teen epidemic,” said Cheryl G. Healton, DrPH, President and CEO of Legacy. “With November marking Lung Cancer Awareness Month and the Great American Smoke Out taking place November 15, these findings provide a timely opportunity for teens to get the resources they need to make the most important decision of their young lives: to quit smoking,” she added.

Data was collected by Research Now and included 570 13-17 year old girls, 9 percent of whom were current smokers. Among those surveyed, most who tried to quit found it was more difficult than they expected (52.6 percent); less than half (40 percent) were successful in their attempts.

The survey also found that many of the teens who reported smoking identified themselves as social smokers, or someone who had merely tried smoking.

“The term ’social smoking’ becomes problematic for many young smokers. We know that even one cigarette can do damage to your body and light smokers may still face adverse health effects,” Healton said. “Additionally, the nicotine in cigarettes can change the way our brains work – especially the developing brains of young teens. In our efforts to stem the tobacco epidemic, we must not only focus on prevention and providing teens with information on WHY they should not try that first cigarette; we have to devote energy to showing them HOW to stop smoking one of the most addictive substances available to them.”

"At Seventeen, we want to empower girls with real information to make the smartest choices in their health—and their lives," says Ann Shoket, Seventeen's  Editor-In-Chief. "It's crucial that we give girls the right reasons to stop smoking, and the tools to actually make it happen."

Research shows that there are many reasons why teens start to smoke, including peer pressure, rebelliousness, impact of media, parental smoking and more. Many of those surveyed said they started smoking because their friends were smoking and because they were curious. A small number of teen girls reported they smoked to control their weight.

Legacy helps people live longer, healthier lives by building a world where young people reject tobacco and anyone can quit. Legacy’s proven-effective and nationally recognized public education programs include truth®, the national youth smoking prevention campaign that has been cited as contributing to significant declines in youth smoking; EX®, an innovative public health program designed to speak to smokers in their own language and change the way they approach quitting; and research initiatives exploring the causes, consequences and approaches to reducing tobacco use. Located in Washington, D.C., the foundation was created as a result of the November 1998 Master Settlement Agreement (MSA) reached between attorneys general from 46 states, five U.S. territories and the tobacco industry. To learn more about Legacy’s life-saving programs, visit www.LegacyForHealth.org.

Follow us on Twitter @legacyforhealth and Facebookwww.Facebook.com/Legacy.

Seventeen (www.seventeen.com) is the best-selling monthly teen magazine, reaching more than 13 million readers every month. In each issue, Seventeenreports on the latest in fashion, beauty, health and entertainment, as well as information and advice on the complex real-life issues that young women face every day. Readers can interact with the brand on the digital front, with theSeventeen Ultimate Fashion Flipbook iphone app as well as with the monthly edition of the magazine on the iPad. In addition to its U.S. flagship, Seventeenpublishes 13 editions around the world. Seventeen is published by Hearst Magazines, one of the nation's largest diversified communications companies. With its acquisition of Lagardère SCA's 100 titles in 14 countries outside of France, Hearst Magazines now publishes more than 300 editions around the world, including 20 U.S. titles. Hearst Magazines is a leading publisher of monthly magazines in the U.S. in terms of total circulation and reaches 82 million adults (Spring 2012 MRI). Follow Seventeen on Twitter, Tumblr andFacebook.

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Contact: Julia Cartwright, 202-454-5596; jcartwright@legacyforhealth.org

Winning the fight against teen smoking

Written By : Danny McGoldrick on September 6, 2012

The United States has made enormous progress in the fight against tobacco use, the nation’s number one cause of preventable death.

But the battle is far from over.  Tobacco use still kills 443,000 Americans and costs us nearly $100 billion in health care bills annually.  More than 3.6 million American kids and 45 million adults still smoke, and almost 4,000 kids try their first cigarette each day.

Our challenge today is to avoid complacency and commit to finishing the fight against tobacco.  Policy makers, parents and schools all have critical roles to play.

There’s no question that we know how to win this fight.

We’ve cut adult smoking by more than half since the 1960s, to less than 20 percent.  Among high school students, the smoking rate has fallen from a high of 36.4 percent in 1997 to 18.1 percent in 2011.

Our progress has come from using proven strategies: higher tobacco taxes, well-funded tobacco prevention and quit-smoking programs, laws requiring smoke-free work and public places, and effective regulation of tobacco products and marketing.

We cannot let up in our efforts, because the tobacco industry continues to go after our kids.  Tobacco companies spend $10.5 billion a year – nearly $29 million each day – to market their deadly and addictive products in the U.S., and they aggressively fight measures to reduce tobacco use.

To counter declines in smoking, the industry has introduced a smorgasbord of new cigar and smokeless tobacco products, many with sweet flavors, cheap prices and colorful packages that lure kids.  Cheap cigars come in kid-friendly flavors such as chocolate, strawberry, grape and banana.  New smokeless tobacco products look like candy, don’t require spitting and are easy for kids to hide.  There may be more ways for kids to get addicted to nicotine today than ever before.

Parents and Educators Are Role Models

Parents and educators are in powerful positions to prevent kids from using tobacco.  Actions parents can take include:

• Set a good example.  If you don’t smoke, don’t start.  If you do smoke, try to quit. Children of smokers are dramatically more likely to become smokers themselves.  Free help in quitting is available at 1-800-QUIT NOW.
• Whether or not you smoke, make sure your home and cars are smoke-free, that you and others don’t smoke in front of your kids and avoid places that allow smoking.  These actions send a clear message that smoking is harmful and undesirable.
• Set clear and consistent rules on not using tobacco.  Tell your kids not to use tobacco and enforce consequences if they do.
• Make sure your kids have the facts about smoking, and emphasize both long-term and immediate health effects.  Most teens wrongly believe that smoking will not affect their health until they reach middle age.  But smoking can have immediate effects on health, including persistent coughs, respiratory problems and decreased physical performance.  Also emphasize the effects of smoking on physical appearance to counter cigarette ads that portray smoking as sexy and attractive.
• Educate your kids about the role of the tobacco industry.   Make sure both you and your children understand the tobacco industry’s role in marketing a product that addicts and kills.  Help your children understand that they are a target of the tobacco companies and teach them to critically evaluate the marketing messages disseminated by the industry.  Communicate the message that most people DO NOT smoke.

Schools can help prevent and reduce youth tobacco use with strong tobacco-free policies and education programs:

• Forbid all tobacco use by students, staff and visitors on all school grounds and at all school-sponsored events.  School tobacco-free policies, consistently communicated and enforced, help reduce smoking and other tobacco use among students.
• Provide comprehensive tobacco prevention education.  Use evidence-based programs that address not only the short- and long-term health harms of tobacco use, but also issues such as peer pressure and tobacco marketing.  School-based programs are most effective when they are supplemented by strong tobacco-free policies and are part of a comprehensive local or state tobacco prevention program.  It is important to reinforce messages discouraging tobacco use throughout the community, not just in schools.

Visit our website for more information on what parents and schools can do to help kids stay tobacco-free.

Policy Makers Must Lead

Parents, educators and others concerned about tobacco use should also urge elected officials to step up implementation of proven tobacco prevention policies.

To their credit, President Obama and his administration have made it a priority to reinvigorate the fight against tobacco use.  In 2009, the President signed the landmark law giving the Food and Drug Administration authority over tobacco products, which curbed tobacco marketing and sales to kids and banned terms such as “light” and “low-tar” that falsely imply a safer cigarette.

The health care reform law expanded coverage for quit-smoking treatments and provided dedicated funding for disease prevention initiatives, including those to reduce tobacco use.  A large 2009 increase in the federal tobacco tax significantly reduced cigarette sales.  This year, the CDC launched an unprecedented advertising campaign to discourage smoking.

Unfortunately, many states have moved backwards.  In the past four years, states slashed budgets for already-underfunded tobacco prevention and quit-smoking programs by 36 percent.  They collect more than $25 billion a year from the tobacco settlement and tobacco taxes, but spend less than two percent of it to combat tobacco use.  The states’ progress has also slowed in enacting tobacco tax increases and smoke-free air laws. The states must do better.

Our progress has driven tobacco out of sight and out of mind for many Americans. But it remains a serious public health problem that claims too many lives, addicts too many children and devastates too many families.  It’s time for all of us – including elected officials, parents and schools – to commit to winning this fight once and for all.

Danny McGoldrick is the Vice President for Research at Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids.

This article originally appears on Disruptive Women in Health Care.  Please click here for the original article.

Eight Tips for Talking with Youth about Tobacco

The FDA has published the following article

August 20, 2012

Parenting is one of the most gratifying jobs out there. But it is also one of the toughest, especially when it comes to having discussions about important issues like tobacco use.

Consider this: Each day in the United States, more than 3,800 youth under age 18 smoke their first cigarette and more than 1,000 youth under age 18 become daily cigarette smokers.¹ Young people are sensitive to nicotine. The younger they are when they begin using tobacco, the more likely they are to become addicted to nicotine, and the more heavily addicted they will become.²

As a parent, you play an important and influential role in the effort to prevent youth from using tobacco. Some studies suggest peers, family, and parental influences are risk factors for youth smoking initiation.³

So make time to talk to your kids about the threat of using tobacco today. With your guidance, maybe they won't start. The following tips can help you get the conversation started.

1. Share the Facts.
   Knowledge is power – give youth the facts about tobacco so that they can make good choices.View our infographic on the facts about teens and tobacco.
2. Talk Early and Often.
   Tobacco use can start as early as middle school—today, more than 600,000 middle school students smoke cigarettes⁴—so it’s never too early to begin the conversation about tobacco’s dangers. Make your child understand that you want them to stay safe and expect them to avoid using tobacco.
3. Use Everyday Opportunities to Talk and Listen.
   There are plenty of other opportunities every day to bring up the topic of tobacco use and its risks. The next time you see someone smoking in public, take a moment to discuss how it harms the body. Tell them, “Tobacco is highly addictive and toxic to your body.  It can harm your lungs, heart, brain and other body parts.”
4. Be Honest, Direct, and Open.
   Create an environment where both you and your children can talk openly about tobacco use. If friends or relatives have died from tobacco-related illnesses, explain to your kids how tobacco caused their death. Make sure they fully understand the risks of tobacco use. One way to help them learn is through play, like in this cause-and-effect activity showing the potential risks of cigarette smoking.
5. Make it a Two-Way Conversation.
   Talk with, not at, your child. Listen carefully and actively to what your child says and encourage them to ask questions and share their feelings and concerns. 
6. Set a Good Example.
   Children of parents who smoke are more likely to smoke in the future.⁵ If you smoke, don’t use tobacco in your children’s presence and don't leave it where they can easily get it. Please consider trying to quit smoking today.
7. Set Clear Rules.
   Children should be given clear and consistent rules on not using tobacco as they grow up. Learn more about setting rules from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration.
8. Help Your Child Learn to Say "No."
   Adolescents and young adults are uniquely vulnerable to social and environmental influences to use tobacco.⁶ As a parent, you can help your children learn to overcome these influences. Help them create a plan for how to say "no."

Now you have our best tips for starting the conversation about tobacco with your child. Share your own tips with us and other parents.

References

_{1 - Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, Results from the 2010 National Survey on Drug Use and Health: Summary of National Findings, NSDUH Series H-41, HHS Publication No. (SMA) 11-4658. Rockville, MD: Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, 2011.}

_{2 - U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. The Health Consequences of Smoking. Page 7. Atlanta: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Office on Smoking and Health, 2004.}

_{3 - U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Preventing Tobacco Use Among Young People: A Report of the Surgeon General [PDF], Page 110. Atlanta: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Office on Smoking and Health, 2012}

_{4 - U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Preventing Tobacco Use Among Youth and Young Adults: Fact SheetAtlanta: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion, Office of Smoking and Health, 2012}

_{5 - U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Preventing Tobacco Use Among Young People: A Report of the Surgeon General [PDF], Page 97. Atlanta: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Office on Smoking and Health, 2012}

_{6 - U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Preventing Tobacco Use Among Young People: A Report of the Surgeon General [PDF], Page 460. Atlanta: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Office on Smoking and Health, 2012}

Impact of Tobacco — Don’t Be Fooled
Celebrities, movies, popular culture, and the tobacco industry try to make smoking look desirable and glamorous, but what aren’t they telling you? This video, created by Crystal Blair, was the third runner up winner in the 18-25 age category of the Surgeon General’s Video Contest: Tobacco — I’m Not Buying It.

Smokers Don’t Understand
What would it be like to get lung cancer when you're not even a smoker? The negative effects of secondhand smoke are examined in this video, created by Jack Carpenter. It was the second runner up winner in the 18-25 age category of the Surgeon General's Video Contest: Tobacco — I’m Not Buying It.

Not Quite So Different
Two women, different on the surface, discover that they may both suffer from similar health problems in the future, because they are both smokers. This video, created by William Bowman, was the first runner up winner in the 18-25 age category of the Surgeon General’s Video Contest: Tobacco — I’m Not Buying It.

You Don’t Smoke Cigarettes, Cigarettes Smoke You
People think they smoke cigarettes, but with all the negative health consequences, such as heart disease and asthma, could it be said that cigarettes are smoking us? This video, created by Ayyaz Amjad, was the grand prize winner in the 18-25 age category of the Surgeon General's Video Contest: Tobacco — I’m Not Buying It.

Duplin TRU Team
What if you woke up one day and your best friend was gone? What if you could never see them again? The negative effects of smoking are the subject of this video by the Duplin TRU Team from North Carolina, who challenge young adults to be the end to the cycle. This video, created by the Duplin TRU team, was the third runner up winner in the 13-17 age category of the Surgeon General's Video Contest: Tobacco — I’m Not Buying It.

It’s Just Not Worth It
Cigarette smoking has reached an all-time high at Michael Margiotti's school in Moorestown, New Jersey. With students already suffering from shortness of breath and other effects, he details what else they can expect in the future and says: it’s just not worth it. This video was the second runner up winner in the 13-17 age category of the Surgeon General's Video Contest: Tobacco — I’m Not Buying It.

We Deserve a Chance to Live Out Our Dreams!
Kids learn about life by watching their parents. What if kids grew up in a smoke-free world? That's the premise of this video by Taylor Blackwell from Jupiter, Florida. This video was the first runner up winner in the 13-17 age category of the Surgeon General's Video Contest: Tobacco — I’m Not Buying It.

Tobacco I'm Not Buying It Rap
The Manatee Youth for Christ SOZO team, from Bradenton, Florida, rap about the dangers of tobacco, its effect on youth, and why they're not buying it. This video, created by Dantreal Waiters, was the grand prize winner in the 13-17 age category of the Surgeon General’s Video Contest: Tobacco — I'm Not Buying It.

Parents Play Crucial Role in Keeping Youth from Smoking

Second Hand Smoke Does Hurts Kids

Tobacco smoke exposure during childhood can cause respiratory problems later in life

Reviewed By: Robert Carlson, M.D

By: Sarah Wickline

Published:  May 23, 2012 11:20 am

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(dailyRx)

Kids may not appear to develop conditions from second hand smoke when they’re being exposed to it in childhood. But, they can still experience respiratory problems later in life.

A new study finds that kids that are around second hand smoke can develop respiratory problems later in life.

Further research is needed to determine whether prenatal smoking exposure is a factor.

Don’t smoke around kids!

Dr. Juliana Pugmire MPH., DrPH., University of Arizona research specialist and lead author of this study, wants to know about the real long-term effects of second hand smoke on children’s respiratory systems.

The Tucson Epidemiological Study of Airway Obstructive Disease (TESAOD) is a large longitudinal study that began collecting data in 1972 from 3,805 individuals from 1,655 homes in and around Tucson. Each person in the study completed a survey every 2 years until 1996. Dr. Pugmire’s team used the information from 371 people in the study that began participating in the study before the age of 15.

Dr. Pugmire states: “This study shows that exposure to parental smoking increase the risk of persistence of respiratory symptoms from childhood into adulthood independent of personal smoking. Persistent respiratory illness in childhood and young adulthood could indicate an increased risk of chronic respiratory illness and lung function deficits in later life.”

Researchers categorized the data as: asthma, wheeze, cough, and chronic cough (cough that continues for three months in a row or more).

Each person reported whether they did now or had in the past experienced any of these symptoms as well as whether or not their parent was a smoker.

52.3 percent of the 371 children had been exposed to second hand smoke in the home before the age of 15. Researchers did factor in whether or not the child grew up to become a smoker themselves.  

Dr. Pugmire says of their findings: “Persistent wheezing from childhood into adult life has been shown to be associated with lung function deficits. Chronic bronchitis (defined as chronic cough and phlegm) is a significant risk factor for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) development later in life."

"Therefore, the persistence of symptoms like chronic cough and wheeze into young adulthood may indicate a susceptibility to lung function deficits and chronic respiratory illness with age.”

The study, “Respiratory Health Effects Of Childhood Exposure to Environmental Tobacco Smoke In Children Followed to Adulthood”, was presented at the 2012 American Thoracic Society International Conference in San Francisco.

This study was funded by the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI), no conflicts of interest were found.

Smoking Cessation

The Centers for Disease Control lists tobacco use as the single most important preventable risk to human health, and one out of every five people in the United States are addicted to cigarettes, or about 61 million people. Smoking and tobacco use has been proven to cause heart disease, strokes, emphysema, chronic obstructive lung disease, and cancer of the lungs, bladder, throat, mouth, and pancreas.

Quitting smoking is extremely difficult for most smokers. Some studies have compared the difficulty of quitting smoking as similar to that of quitting heroin or cocaine. Some people can just go 'cold turkey' and quit immediately. Many more have attributed their success in quitting by using nicotine replacement products, such as gums, lozenges, or patches, which allow the person to gradually wean themselves off nicotine while avoiding the toxic byproducts of smoking and helping them resist the urge to smoke. However, recent research has shown that these products may offer help with temporarily quitting, but eventually over 90% of the smokers relapse within six months.

SWAT - Students Take on the Tobacco Companies

BRADENTON -- Students Working Against Tobacco (SWAT) want to know; If Tobacco is an adult decision, why are they marketing it to kids? They say that cherry Skoal is for someone that likes the taste of candy. When a product shortens the life of those who use it, the manufacturer is always looking for new customers to replace the dead ones. The kids from SWAT aren't buying it. 

 

SWAT club members, Rachael Strebel and Ashton Mulvany played a video at the Manatee County Commissioner meeting Tuesday. Joined by club members, Elea Smith, Alex Fink and Joseph Harris, they starred in a video production (see below), exposing the tobacco industry's attempt at luring kids into consuming their products.

 

Jessica May, from Manatee County Substance Abuse Coalition (MCSAC), escorted the SWAT club to the BOCC chambers where they met the commissioners and Florida House Representative Jim Boyd, (R-Bradenton). Boyd invited SWAT and their video to Tallahassee, so they could convince legislators into supporting a bill that would establish statewide rules preventing tobacco companies from targeting kids.

 

Megan Jourdan, from the Manatee Health Department and Julie Arranibar, from the Manatee County Board of Education, both chaperoned the group. But it was obvious that these youths were very mature and wise beyond their years. So much, that there is little doubt Tallahassee will learn something from their visit, something state legislatures should have acted on years ago. 

 

SWAT is Florida's statewide youth organization working to mobilize, educate and equip Florida youth to revolt against and de-glamorize Big Tobacco. They are a united movement of empowered youth working towards a tobacco free future.

 

SWAT wants to know -- How Dumb Do They Think We Are?

Children exposed to passive smoking at risk of long-term lung problems

• Researchers found a strong link between childhood exposure to second-hand smoke and chronic cough in adulthood

By DAILY MAIL REPORTER

PUBLISHED: 04:57 EST, 21 May 2012 | UPDATED: 04:58 EST, 21 May 2012

Children who are exposed to secondhand smoke may experience the damaging effects well into adulthood, say scientists.

Researchers found even non-smokers who were exposed to passive smoking when they were young had a higher risk of developing chornic chest infections.

The team from the University of Arizona analysed results from a 24-year study that assessed the prevalence rates and risk factors of respiratory and other chronic diseases. 

Smoking increases a child's risk of developing chronic bronchitis as adults

Participants were asked to complete questionnaires that were issued every two years from 1972 until 1996. The researchers found that 52.3 per cent of the children had been exposed to tobacco smoke between birth and 15 years old.

After adjusting for sex, age, years of follow-up and personal smoking status, the researchers found that this exposure was significantly associated with several persistent respiratory symptoms.

Study author Dr Juliana Pugmire, said: 'We examined asthma as well as other respiratory symptoms and found that exposure to parental smoking had the strongest association with cough and chronic cough that persisted into adult life.

'Exposure to parental smoking also had effects, although weaker, on persistent wheezing and asthma in adulthood.'

While researchers have warned of the potential health risks of second-hand smoke for 30 years, there have been few studies into the long-term effects on children.

'Earlier studies established a link between parental smoking and childhood respiratory illness, but in this study, we sought to demonstrate whether these effects persisted into adulthood,' she said.

Dr Pugmire said that wheezing and a chronic cough were early risk factors of far more serious lung conditions.

'Persistent wheezing from childhood into adult life has been shown to be associated with lung function deficits. 

'Chronic bronchitis (defined as chronic cough and phlegm) is a significant risk factor for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) development later in life.

'Therefore, the persistence of symptoms like chronic cough and wheeze into young adulthood may indicate a susceptibility to lung function deficits and chronic respiratory illness with age,' she said.

Further research will be needed to examine whether smokers who were exposed to second-hand smoke as children have a greater risk of dying in middle-age than smokers who were not exposed, she added.

The study will be presented at the ATS 2012 International Conference in San Francisco.

NATIVE AMERICAN TEENS LEARN TRADITIONAL WAYS TO BECOME POLICY CHANGE ADVOCATES

Youth-produced videos highlighting the commercial tobacco effects are on YouTube

(Minneapolis) -- When the Native American youth of Mashkiki Ogichidaag (Medicine Warriors) get together each week, there’s a lot of work to be done. The 10 program participants are focused on developing a media campaign to persuade Twin Cities Native American worksites to adopt commercial tobacco-free policies. From writing scripts to editing video to making presentations, the youth have discovered much – about themselves, their cultural values and traditional strengths – in their quest to educate the local Indian community about the effects and dangers of commercial tobacco use.

Participants like 13-year old Brian Arthur, an Ojibwe from White Earth reservation, are learning first-hand about the difference between traditional tobacco use and commercial tobacco misuse. Early in the program, he participated with the Medicine Warriors and Ain Dah Yung Center’s Teen Tobacco Prevention youth in intergenerational tobacco discussions as part of the Inter-Tribal Elder Services’ Circle of Tobacco Wisdom.

In March, Native elders accompanied Brian and 20 more Native American youth, to Big Lake, Minn., where they harvested Red Willow tree bark, an essential element in traditional tobacco use. This harvesting day trip helped connect the youth to the land and their traditions to ensure the continuance of the Native way of life. “They don’t teach you this in school and the Medicine Warrior program educates me,” Brian said.

From there, the Medicine Warriors learned how to make “kinnikinnick” from the Red Willow bark. Kinnikinnick (Algonquin for “that which is mixed”) is generally used for pipe ceremonies and strictly for spiritual, cultural and ritual purposes.

“In our group, we made a simple blend of kinnikinnick using the four sacred medicines: Cedar, Sage, Sweetgrass and the Red Willow bark, which is considered tobacco,” explained Medicine Warrior Youth Worker Julia Littlewolf. “We’ll use this kinnikinnick as an offering in our presentations, as gifts and to share as we continue educating the community about traditional tobacco.”

The Medicine Warriors have produced four videos, which they use in their community presentations. Also available on YouTube, the first public service video applies humor to focus on the effects of second-hand smoke; a second video captures the Medicine Warrior youth group conducting a cigarette butt clean-up; the third, “What Would You Rather Be Doing?,” highlights the activities that discourage youth from smoking; and the fourth, “What Our Community Has to Say…,” features a collection of interviews about commercial tobacco abuse.

So far, five Minneapolis worksites – including the Division of Indian Work, which sponsors the Medicine Warriors – have adopted new policies banning the use of commercial tobacco use on their property. All Nations Indian Church, Native American Community Clinic, Migizi Communications and Indigenous People’s Task Force have also revised their policies.

Now, the Medicine Warriors are in the second phase of the project, producing a new round of anti-commercial tobacco smoking videos. The teens understand that progress is incremental. But with the program goal of building capacity in Native American youth as traditional tobacco use and policy change advocates and protectors of Native medicines for future generations, they are making great strides.

As Arden Two Bears, a 13-year old Ojibwe from Leech Lake reservation, said, “By doing these kinds of things, it makes me want to go out and talk to people about how smoking and second hand smoke can hurt you in the future.”

Mashkiki Ogichidaag videos can be seen on YouTube or ordered on DVD from the Division of Indian Work, 612-279-6355 or jlittlewolf@diw-mn.org

 Mashkiki Ogichidaag is a program of the Division of Indian Work, and funded by the American Indian Community Tobacco Initiative from the Minnesota Department of Health, Office of Tobacco Prevention and Control.

Attention all 2012 Little League baseball and softball players! Oral Health America's (OHA) NSTEP® program (National Spit Tobacco Education Program) is teaming with Little League International to launch its eleventh annual slogan contest where players have a chance to win a trip to the Little League World Series! To enter, Little Leaguers ages 8-14 create a ten-word phrase that describes why spit tobacco is dangerous and deadly.

Why is important to educate teens on the topic of tobacco? Because according to the Tobacco Reality Unfiltered group (TRU), the number of teens who wish they would have never started smoking is 70 percent. Plus, once they have started it is very hard to quit.

What makes tobacco so addictive and so hard for teens to quit smoking? Nicotine. Nicotine, which is found in tobacco, is more addictive than heroin or cocaine. In fact, nicotine reaches the brain in 7 seconds.

Another reason teens smoke is peer pressure, stress, to look “cool” or because their parents smoke. Our goal is to show teens how not only addictive tobacco use can be, but also how very harmful it is to your body. Each year, smoking kills more people than AIDS, alcohol abuse, car wrecks, suicides, illegal drugs and fires combined. And, because of the harmful effects of smoking, seven minutes of your life is lost per cigarette!

Take a look at the facts, and you will better understand just how harmful cigarettes are to your body. The chemicals in tobacco harm many parts of the body, including skin, mouth, teeth, throat, lungs, heart, stomach, bladder, colon, brain, fingers, and blood vessels.

In addition, cancer may develop in the brain, lungs (in fact, 87 percent of this type of cancer is attributable to smoking), mouth, bladder, and pancreas. Other diseases that may develop due to tobacco use include hardening of the arteries, emphysema, chronic bronchitis, coronary heart disease, gum disease, and premature aging of the skin.

You may be surprised to learn that cigarette smoke has over 4,000 chemicals in it, and 60 of those are known to cause cancer.

We believe adolescents need and deserve to learn the truth about tobacco and its harmful effects, so we are spreading the word through the TRU Youth Advisory Council (Tobacco Reality Unfiltered), a movement by teens, for teens in North Carolina, with the goal of becoming the first tobacco free generation.

We hope this important message is being heard, and our continued efforts will educate kids and encourage them to stay away from tobacco and other dangerous substances.

If you are a teen, do your part by going to the website www.realityunfiltered.com and taking the pledge to be TRU! While so many diseases and sicknesses are not preventable, cancer caused by smoking is. Smoking is the number one preventable cause of death each year. An estimated 434,000 people die from cigarette smoking annually. Don’t be a statistic — don’t start smoking, and if you smoke, stop now! While this message is targeted to teens, it applies to everyone, regardless of age. So remember to “spread the word, not the second-hand smoke.”

EDITOR’S NOTE: The authors, members of the Health Occupations Students of America (HOSA) at Highland School of Technology are speaking to youth clubs about the dangers of tobacco use. Today they share their message with readers

The tobacco industry spends over a million dollars an hour on marketing that hooks kids!

Smoking among American youth is a “pediatric epidemic” that isn’t occurring by accident:  It’s directly caused by tobacco industry marketing and promotion that entices teenagers to start smoking and encourages their progression to becoming regular smokers.

The new U.S. Surgeon General’s report released today by Surgeon General Regina Benjamin says the evidence “consistently and coherently” points to the intentional marketing of tobacco products to youth as a cause of young peoples’ tobacco use.

 “Youth smoking is not an accident. It doesn’t just happen,” Assistant Secretary for Health Howard Koh said at a Washington news conference.

Two new campaigns aim to shield youth from tobacco displays.  In Albany, New York a campaign began educating New Yorkers about the dangers of exposing youth to in-store tobacco displays. 

The print, radio and online blitz is sponsored by The Community Partnerships for a Tobacco Free New York, which calls for gas stations, convenience stores and supermarkets to cover or move tobacco to an area concealed to shoppers.

“Research shows that kids who shop at stores with tobacco marketing two or more times a week are 64% more likely to start smoking than their peers who don’t,” campaign materials state.

In Madison, New York, The Madison County Board of Health is developing a proposed ban on tobacco displays that would require retailers open to minors to keep tobacco products hidden from view.

The print, radio and online blitz is sponsored by The Community Partnerships for a Tobacco Free New York, which calls for gas stations, convenience stores and supermarkets to cover or move tobacco to an area concealed to shoppers.

“Research shows that kids who shop at stores with tobacco marketing two or more times a week are 64% more likely to start smoking than their peers who don’t,” campaign materials state.

To read more about the Albany program click here.

To read more about the Madison program click here.

Nearly one in four high school seniors is a cigarette smoker according to a mammoth 920-page report released by the U.S. Surgeon General on Thursday, March 8.  American Indian adolescents (12-17) and young adults (18-25) top the lists of all race/ethnicities in rates of cigarette smoking. 

According to the report, “For both age groups, American Indian/Alaskan Native males (14.3% adolescents, 50.0% young adults) and females (16.3% adolescents, 46.1% young adults) had the highest prevalence of cigarette smoking.” 

Graph by Scott McKie B.P./One Feather; Source: U.S. Surgeon General's Report

Read the full article here.

From the Surgeon General's press release:

Surgeon General releases new report on youth smoking

More than 3.6 million kids smoke cigarettes 

The fight against youth tobacco use was accelerated today by Surgeon General Dr. Regina Benjamin, with the release of the Surgeon General’s Report, Preventing Tobacco Use Among Youth and Young Adults.  This report details the scope, health consequences and influences that lead to youth tobacco use and proven strategies that prevent its use.

To help communicate the report findings and steps every American can take to join the fight against youth tobacco use, the surgeon general also unveiled a guide with practical information on addressing tobacco use in young people, Preventing Tobacco Use Among Youth and Young Adults: We Can Make the Next Generation Tobacco-Free. In addition, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Office on Smoking and Health will launch the Surgeon General’s Video Challenge to engage youth and young adults in developing original videos that feature one or more of the report’s findings. More information can be found at www.Challenge.gov.

Tobacco is the leading cause of preventable and premature death, killing more than 1,200 Americans every day.  For every tobacco-related death two new young people under the age of 26 become regular smokers.  Nearly 90 percent of these replacement smokers try their first cigarette by age 18.  Approximately 3 out of 4 high school smokers continue to smoke well into adulthood.

“Targeted marketing encourages more young people to take up this deadly addiction every day,” said HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius.  “This administration is committed to doing everything we can to prevent our children from using tobacco.”

This administration has taken historic steps to protect children from the dangers of tobacco use including the passage of the Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act (TCA) which gives the Food and Drug Administration authority to regulate tobacco products to prevent use by minors. TCA prevents tobacco use through activities such as age and identification verification at retailers, restrictions on the sale of single cigarettes and a ban on certain candy and fruit-flavored cigarettes. Other activities include support for state quitlines and implementation of web and mobile based interventions aimed to reach young people. 

The surgeon general’s report provides further scientific evidence on the addictive nature of nicotine.  The younger individuals are when they start using tobacco, the more likely they are to become addicted and the more heavily addicted they will become.

“The addictive power of nicotine makes tobacco use much more than a passing phase for most teens. We now know smoking causes immediate physical damage, some of which is permanent,” said Dr. Benjamin. “Today, more than 600,000 middle school students and 3 million high school students smoke. We don’t want our children to start something now that they won’t be able to change later in life.”

While the long-term health effects of tobacco use are well known, this report concludes that smoking early in life has substantial health risks that begin immediately in young smokers.  These include serious early cardiovascular damage and a reduction of lung functionality.  This lung damage is permanent, causes shortness of breath immediately and increases the risk of pulmonary diseases later in life.

Expenditures for marketing and promotion of tobacco products exceed $1 million an hour – over $27 million a day – in the United States alone. Targeted messages and images that portray smoking as an acceptable, appealing activity for young people are widespread, and advertising for tobacco products is prominent in retail stores and online.  

“We can and must continue to do more to accelerate the decline in youth tobacco use,” said Dr. Howard Koh, assistant secretary for health at HHS, “Until we end the tobacco epidemic, more young people will become addicted, more people will die, and more families will be devastated by the suffering and loss of loved ones.”

Copies of the full Report, executive summary, and the easy-to-read guide may be downloaded at http://www.surgeongeneral.gov. To order printed copies of these documents go to http://www.cdc.gov/tobacco and click on the Publications Catalog link under Tools & Resources. For access to quitting resources visit www.smokefree.gov.

Preventing Tobacco Use Among Youth and Young Adults—

A Report of the Surgeon General 

Key Messages

• More than 600,000 middle school students smoke cigarettes.

• More than 3 million high school students smoke cigarettes.

• Nearly a million and a half kids under age 18 will try their first cigarette this year.

• Smoking kills more than 1,200 Americans every day.  And every tobacco-related death is replaced by two new smokers under the age of 25.  

• The younger kids are when they try tobacco, the more likely they are to get addicted.

• 3 out of 4 teens who smoke will continue smoking into adulthood – even if they intend to quit in a few years.

• More than a million dollars an hour is spent to market tobacco products in this country.  

• Successful tobacco prevention programs more than pay for themselves in lives and health care dollars saved; the most effective ones are funded at or near CDC-recommended levels.  

A Fact Sheet is available for download as a pdf here.

A Consumer Friendly Booklet is available for download as a pdf here.  This easy-to-read, 20-page booklet presents  the major content of the report in plain language and is designed to help parents, teachers, policy makers, health care professionals, and other concerned adults understand the importance of the report and how they can take a stand to protect young people from the devastating effects of tobacco use.

Video Contest
In conjunction with the 2012 Surgeon General's report, CDC's Office on Smoking and Health has launched a video contest called “Tobacco—I’m Not Buying It.”  This contest invites youth ages 13-17 and young adults ages 18-25 to submit original videos that feature one or more of the key findings from the report.

Submissions will be reviewed for eligibility and then judged on the best use and depiction of key messages, recommendations contained in the report, and other criteria listed in the rules. CDC will award a $1,000 grand prize and three $500 runner-up prizes for each of the following categories (English and Spanish language submissions in both age-based groups) for a total of $10,000 in prizes.

Please share the Surgeon General’s Spotlight Facebook tab on CDC Tobacco Free with your communities and visit Challenge.gov for a complete list of contest rules.  The video submission deadline is April 20, 2012.

The following is taken from the CDC's Tobacco Use and the Health of Young People Fact Sheet.

Tobacco Use by Young People

• Each day in the United States, approximately 4,000 adolescents aged 12-17 try their first cigarette.
   
• Each year cigarette smoking accounts for approximately 1 of every 5 deaths, or about 438,000 people. Cigarette smoking results in 5.5 million years of potential life lost in the United States annually.
   
• Although the percentage of high school students who smoke has declined in recent years, rates remain high: 19% of high school students report current cigarette use (smoked cigarettes on at least 1 day during the 30 days before the survey).
   
• Forty-six percent of high school students have ever tried cigarette smoking, even one or two puffs.
   
• Eleven percent of high school students have smoked a whole cigarette before age 13.
   
• Nearly 9% of high school students (15% of male and 2% of female students) used smokeless tobacco (e.g., chewing tobacco, snuff, or dip), on at least 1 day during the 30 days before the survey. Adolescents who use smokeless tobacco are more likely than nonusers to become cigarette smokers.
   
• Fourteen percent of high school students smoked cigars, cigarillos, or little cigars on at least 1 day during the 30 days before the survey.

The full fact sheet can be found here.

Researchers, from the National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion and the CDC, reported, in the March edition of Pediatrics, that second-hand smoke exposure among middle and high school students in the USA has dropped over the last ten years.

To read more click here.

Experts fear candy-like products could put children at risk for nicotine addiction, poisoning.

To read more click here...

A Tobacco Survey Study of American Indian youth in California

The University of Southern California Keck School of Medicine has recently completed a survey of 1000 Native youth in California regarding clutural tobacco use.  They reached urban, rural, and reservation youth to take the survey.  

They have made available to us both a informative brochure, and the final report of the survey data.

To download the brochure click here.

To download the final report click here.

A new study in Tobacco Control confirms that raising the price of tobacco will effectively reduce youth consumption.  Read more here...

The FDA have posted helpful links to help with Youth Tobacco Prevention.

To read more click here.

The National Institute on Drug Abuse have published an excellent article on the Facts about Teens, Tobacco, and Addiction.

To read more click here.