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Tobacco Facts
Here is the ugly truth
Tobacco will kill 50% of every young person who starts smoking
early and keeps it up. Half of that 50% will die in middle age, losing
an average of 22 years of normal life expectancy.
It's a true addiction!
Typically, when teenagers begin to
smoke, they don't realize that nicotine is addictive. As they pass
through the 4 predictable stages of addiction, it takes them less than
a year to progress to full-scale addiction:
a.. Preparation
(being seduced by a culture that glamorizes, accepts and even defends
tobacco use, including influence by advertising, entertainment and
peer pressure-and too often the example of important adults in their
lives)
b.. Experimentation
c.. Smoking regularly
d.. Nicotine addiction
Is addiction too strong a term? Isn't
smoking just a bad habit that can be broken without too much effort? To
the contrary!
In 1988 the US Surgeon General
concluded that tobacco is addicting and that the physical and
psychological symptoms of nicotine are "similar to those that
determine addiction to drugs such as heroin and cocaine."
Nicotine's effects on the brain are similar to those of heroin,
amphetamine and cocaine. In ranking addictive drugs, nicotine was
determined to be even more addictive than heroin, cocaine, alcohol,
caffeine, and marijuana.
Some startling facts about our kids:
a.. 36% of high school
students smoke
b.. 25% of high school
males use smokeless tobacco
c.. Every day 6,000+ kids
have their first cigarettes; 3,000 of them will become regular smokers
d.. 500 million packs of
cigarettes are sold illegally to kids every year
e.. 15.5 million kids are
exposed to secondhand smoke at home
f.. Today 3,000,000+ kids
smoke almost one billion packs of cigarettes a year
g.. Over 5,000,000 kids
under 18 alive today will ultimately die from tobacco use
h.. Kids are three times as
sensitive to tobacco advertising as adults
i.. 86% of kids buy one of
the three most heavily advertised brands (Marlboro, Camel or Newport)
j.. Kids are more likely to
be influenced by tobacco advertising than by peer pressure (the
tobacco industry spends $5.2 billion every year in the US on
advertising and promotion)
[Statistics above from Campaign for
Tobacco Free Kids]
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This year's World No Tobacco Day
encourages our kids to kick the habit, with the theme:
Get Ahead of the Crowd - Leave the
Pack Behind
Tobacco Still Plaguing Our Youth
Tobacco
use among young people is on the rise in many countries throughout the
world. Everyday, while thousands of young people experiment
with a cigarette for the first time, nearly 10,000 people
around the globe die as a result of tobacco use. The age at which a
young person tries his or her first cigarette is dropping, with the
majority of smokers beginning in their teenage years.
Today, tobacco kills roughly 3.5
million people each year. Despite warnings about the dangers of
tobacco and startling statistics about the serious health problems
caused by tobacco, its use continues to increase among young people.
Why?
Unfortunately, there is not one simple
answer. Adolescence is characterized by a feeling of
invincibility and a sense of curiosity. Young people experiment with
different behaviors without giving thought to the long-term
consequences of their actions. Many adolescents underestimate the
addictiveness of nicotine and its serious health risks. While parents
and teachers may tell 11-, 12- and 13-year-olds that smoking can cause
cancer and could kill them by the time they are in their 50s, cancer
doesn't mean much to a young person, and living until 50 sounds like
they would have had a very long life.
While these factors influence young
people to use tobacco, undoubtedly the most significant persuading
factor in the increasing number of young tobacco users worldwide is
tobacco advertising. It effectively influences teenagers to start
using tobacco, and it encourages them to continue. In many tobacco
ads, smoking is portrayed as classy and glamorous, and smokers appear
to be mature and popular.
Tobacco advertising often feeds on the
fact that many teens look up to actors, musicians and/or athletes.
Smoking is perceived as an adult behavior by young people, and
teenagers often start smoking in order to appear more mature. A sense
of social acceptability and belonging typically is a priority for
young people. Peer pressure may drive a young person from
experimentation with tobacco to addiction.
The tobacco epidemic warrants immediate
attention. Cessation and anti-tobacco programs work.
Working together, countries throughout the world can defeat the
tobacco epidemic and provide a tobacco-free world for our young
people.
Richard L. Wittenberg
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OK, So....How Do I Quit?
Between 75-80% of smokers want to quit,
and one-third have made at least three serious attempts to quit.
Because we know that the first attempts
at smoking cessation are often not successful, the smoker who is
determined to quit must be prepared to make multiple attempts, perhaps
three or four. This is very normal, and these attempts should not be
seen as failures but rather small setbacks in what will become a
successful program. Therefore, it is important that those who advise
and support smokers trying to quit be supportive and reassuring.
The smoker might test different
intervention techniques or combinations of methods to find the right
one.
Great Strategies for Breaking the
Habit
a.. Commit to quit
b.. Talk with a health care
worker to get information about methods that can help you quit
c.. Choose a quit date
d.. Don't try to taper off
- abstain from tobacco completely from the quit date on
e.. Get rid of all
tobacco-related equipment, and clean all clothes and your car just
before the quit date
f.. Stop smoking at home
and in the car
g.. Don't go to places
where you are likely to be tempted to smoke
h.. Don't worry about
dieting until you have safely stopped quitting
i.. Tell your friends,
family and co-workers that you are quitting, and ask them to help you
j.. Learn how to avoid or
cope with situations and behaviors that make you want to smoke.
(Examples: drinking caffeine or alcohol, talking on the telephone,
etc.)
k.. Be prepared to
experience withdrawal symptoms or a brief period, including
irritability, impatience, hostility, anxiety, depressed mood,
difficulty concentrating, insomnia, restlessness, increased appetite
and weight gain
l.. Decide in advance how
you will deal with your inevitable urges to smoke and develop
strategies to cope, such as deep breathing, taking a quick walk,
exercising, chewing gum, sucking on hard candy or a mint, drinking
water, eating something crunchy (like celery and carrot sticks),
calling a sympathetic friend, taking a bath, reading something
inspirational, meditating, saying a prayer, looking at pictures of the
damage that tobacco can do to your body. Be inventive!
Try a Combination of Methods
A combination of methods is often the
most effective method of quitting. Options include:
a.. Nicotine replacement
therapy (NRT)-Using this method doubles the success rate of
quitting. Nicotine is administered through a pill, a patch or gum to
satisfy the need for nicotine
b.. Non-nicotine drug
therapy, such as the drug bupropion, has also been shown to
double the success rate
c.. Behavioral therapy-(See
"great strategies" this page)
d.. Alternative
methods-including hypnosis, acupuncture,
use of a "peripheral nicotine antagonist" such as lobeline,
and mouth washes designed to make the taste of cigarettes aversive. No
major tests have been done on these methods, but they may prove
helpful
The Stages of Quitting
Typically, a person who wants to quit
using tobacco goes through the following stages:
a.. Precontemplation-This
is when the person is beginning to consider quitting and needs
motivation
b.. Contemplation-The
smoker now needs information
c.. Preparation-Establish a
program and set a date
d.. Action -Do it!
Strategies for a Successful World
No-Tobacco Day 1999
a.. Draw attention to the
issue of smoking cessation by developing a smoking cessation or
awareness activity targeting teens
b.. Contact schools,
businesses, departments, organizations (see article this page) and
urge them to promote smoking cessation among teens
c.. Recruit partners
(celebrities/leaders/activists) to help observe World No-Tobacco
Day
d.. Make your event
newsworthy, then use the media to promote your activity
e.. Seek donations from
local businesses or organizations if your budget is small - or apply
for local grants (start early)
f.. Feel free to use
materials from this newsletter (please credit the American
Association for World Health as the source)
Ideas for Activities
a.. Publicize tobacco
cessation programs available for those who want to quit
b.. Hold an essay or poster
competition on the theme "Get Ahead of the Crowd-Leave the Pack
Behind" in schools or colleges
c.. Write a letter or op-ed
article for your local newspaper demonstrating support for tobacco
cessation and prevention, include local statistics about smoking and
health
d.. Submit a proclamation
(see sample in this issue) to your school or employer recognizing
May 31 as World No-Tobacco Day
e.. Distribute table tents
and tray covers to cafeterias and local restaurants to promote smoking
cessation and prevention
Because the tobacco epidemic affects
all of us , we must all take action to help create a healthier,
smoke-free world. Every sector of society can contribute to the
effort, because only a concerted effort will succeed.
Find yourself in the listing below and
encourage others to do whatever they can to protect the health of our
citizens:
a.. Restaurants and Shops:
Display no-smoking signs and information, and offer a smoke-free
environment.
b.. Faith Communities:
Encourage a tobacco-free healthy lifestyle. Religious groups could
offer to host smoking cessation programs.
c.. Employees: Organize
special events and provide information to celebrate World No-Tobacco
Day. Insert leaflets in pay envelopes, provide smoking cessation
support, feature articles on tobacco control in company newsletters,
and establish a smoke-free workplace.
d.. Business and Industry:
Provide smoke-free workplaces. It protects the health and safety of
your workers and it makes good business sense (reduces health care
costs and can lower insurance premiums).
e.. Schools and
Universities: Provide effective anti-tobacco education. Educate
students at regular intervals (not just once as year) about the
dangers of tobacco use and the benefits of a tobacco-free life.
Teachers can form "teachers against tobacco" groups to
increase efforts to educate children.
f.. Public Health
Professionals: Develop smoking cessation, tobacco awareness and
smoking prevention programs to appeal to diverse aspects of your
community.
g.. Health Care
Professionals: Exhibit and promote a tobacco-free lifestyle. Brief and
consistent advice from a health professional to stop smoking is a
leading strategy to reduce tobacco use. Collectively, health
professional societies can support and encourage the establishment of
comprehensive tobacco control policies.
h.. Media: Refuse
tobacco advertising and expose tobacco industry tactics. Cover tobacco
issues and use national and local anti-tobacco events as news pegs to
educate your readers about the hazards of tobacco use. Inform the
public of such tactics as withholding facts, promoting sales and
circumventing voluntary tobacco control codes.
i.. Youth Groups: Initiate
tobacco control activities in schools, scouts, sports, and other
clubs. Contact the National Center for Tobacco-Free Kids to learn
about ways young people can take action in their communities (call
1-800-284-KIDS, or e-mail info@tobaccofreekids.org).
Undercover buying operations, hunts for pro-smoking messages, and
merchandise dumps are a few of the many activities in which young
people can participate.
j.. Cultural and Sports
Groups: Promote healthy lifestyles. Insist that events be
smoke-free and free of tobacco promotion. And protect athletes from
being used to endorse tobacco products. Encourage prominent sports and
cultural personalities to serve as role models for healthy, smoke-free
lifestyles.
k.. Agriculture
Departments: Provide assistance for the development of
alternative activities to tobacco growing.
l.. Attorneys and Justice
Departments: Advocate for legislative change.
m.. Consumer Affairs
Departments: Provide information on the health hazards of
tobacco.
n.. Environmental
Groups/Agencies: Inform the public of the environmental effects of
tobacco use. Publicize hidden issues such as deforestation.
o.. Labor Unions,
Transportation and Public Service: Protect the public from
environmental tobacco smoke (ETS). Worksites, public transportation,
and government buildings should be free from ETS. Occupational health
and safety departments should ensure protection from ETS in enclosed
public places. Transport authorities can abolish tobacco advertising
in public transportation.
In Their Own Words
Internal documents from tobacco
companies reveal that not only has the industry been aware of the
addictive nature of their product but they have also worked to keep
the levels of nicotine high:
"We have to satisfy the
'individual' who is either about to give up or has just done so... We
are searching explicitly for a socially acceptable addictive product.
The essential constituent is most likely to be nicotine or a direct
substitute for it."
(Key Areas: Product Innovation Over
Next 10 Years for Long Term Development, British American Tobacco
Memoran-dum, 8/79 reported in The Guardian, 15 February '98)
"Nicotine is addictive. We are,
then, in the business of selling nicotine, an addictive drug."
(Addison Yeaman from Brown &
Williamson, 7/17/63)
"Happily for the tobacco industry,
nicotine is both habituating and unique in its variety of
physiological actions."
(Planning memo by R.J. Reynolds Tobacco
Co researcher Claude Teague, 1972)
Global Challenge
The World Health Organization
(WHO) estimates that currently there are 3.5 million deaths a year
from tobacco. That figure is expected to rise to about 10 million by
2030, when tobacco is predicted to be the leading cause of disease
burden in the world, causing about one in eight deaths. 70% of those
deaths will occur in developing countries.
"The sheer scale of tobacco's
impact on global disease burden is often not fully
appreciated-particularly what is likely to happen without appropriate
intervention in developing countries," observed a WHO release.
They are faced with a $400 billion tobacco industry which promotes
their harmful products aggressively.
In response to these concerns, WHO's
new Director-General, Dr Gro Harlem Brundtland, established a Cabinet
project-the Tobacco Free Initiative (TFI), in July 1998, to coordinate
an improved global strategic response to tobacco as an important
public health issue.
World No-Tobacco Day
Celebrated throughout the United States
and worldwide, World No-Tobacco Day (which is observed every year on
May 31) encourages governments, communities, groups, and individuals
to sponsor community activities in concert with over 191 countries
across the globe. The national and international media attention
surrounding World No Tobacco Day helps to promote and reinforce local
efforts.
Sample Proclamation
World No-Tobacco Day 1999
Whereas the health of all people is one
true measure of a nation [state/county/city]; and
Whereas the health of all Americans is
inseparably linked with the health of all people throughout the world;
and
Whereas the health of all people in all
countries starts by protecting the health of all children; and
Whereas all the nations of the world,
acting through the World Health Organization, of which the United
States is an active member, are pledged to the goal of Health for All
by the Year 2000; and
Whereas May 31 of each year has been
established by the World Health Organization as World No-Tobacco Day -
intended to encourage governments, communities, groups and individuals
to become aware of the devastating costs of tobacco consumption and to
take appropriate action; and
Whereas the 1999 theme, "Get Ahead
of the Crowd-Leave the Pack Behind!," is an opportunity to
encourage our young people to quit smoking, to promote a way of life
where tobacco use no longer is an accepted norm, to support
anti-tobacco legislation, and to provide young people in all countries
with appropriate messages about a healthy lifestyle free of tobacco
use; and
Whereas the American Association for
World Health is encouraging the promotion of World No-Tobacco Day in
the United States by stressing the importance of tobacco cessation and
tobacco control through the provision of empowering information,
particularly regarding education and policy efforts to prevent tobacco
use and addiction among our young people.
Therefore, I, ________________,
Governor/Executive/Mayor of ________________, do hereby declare May
31, 1999, as World No-Tobacco Day and urge all citizens to take part
in observances and activities on this day and throughout the year
designed to advance the cause of tobacco control and prevention by
promoting awareness of the devestating economic and human costs of
tobacco use, and by encouraging participation in the worldwide efforts
of obtaining "health for all."
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Tobacco Facts
a.. Tobacco smoke contains
more than 4,000 identified chemical compounds, 43 of which are known
to cause cancer in humans or animals
b.. The terms
"light" and "mild" are grossly misleading, since
they imply a healthier cigarette or tobacco product and smokers
regulate their nicotine intake by the intensity, volume or frequency
of puffing to get their desired nicotine dose
c.. Smokers who don't quit
in their early thirties have a 50% chance of dying of a
tobacco-related disease
Smokeless Tobacco
a.. There are two forms of
smokeless tobacco-oral snuff ("dip") and chewing tobacco
("chew")
b.. Smokeless tobacco is
not safer than cigarettes-it contains many dangerous chemicals,
including cancer-producing chemicals
c.. Long-term smokeless
tobacco users begin to develop oral tissue abnormalities within a year
d.. Smokeless tobacco can
result in non-cancerous and pre-cancerous oral lesions, gum recession,
gingivitis, tooth caries, abrasion and stains
Passive Smoke (ETS)
a.. Environmental tobacco
smoke (ETS) [passive smoke] is a Group A carcinogen and it causes 30
times as many lung cancer deaths as all air pollutants combined
b.. Exposure to passive
smoke increases the risk of lower respiratory tract infections,
asthma, ear infections and Sudden Infant Death Syndrome in children
Health Risks
a.. Nicotine produces
cancer
b.. Nicotine causes
increases in heart rate, blood pressure, and blood flow from the
heart; narrowing of blood vessels; decreased oxygen in the blood;
increased fatty acids, glucose, cortisol and other hormones in the
blood; increased risk of hardened arteries and blood clotting
Pregnancy and Smoking
Many women, particularly teenage girls,
have taken up smoking in recent years. A study revealed that smoking
among pregnant teens has increased, with as many as 29% of
non-Hispanic white teens smoking during pregnancy.
A possible reason for this is put forth
in another study, which suggested that pregnant teen smokers were
influenced to continue to smoke during pregnancy by two factors- their
perception that their parents disapproved of their smoking and
their friends' cigarette use.
The health benefits of quitting smoking
are significant for the unborn children of pregnant women.
a.. Pregnant women who
smoke are at much greater risk of miscarriage, stillbirth, pre-term
delivery, low-birth weight, and infant mortality
b.. If the pregnant woman
stops smoking before pregnancy or during the first 3-4 months of
pregnancy, the risks of low birth weight are reduced
c.. Even though the use of
the nicotine replacement patch during pregnancy is controversial, many
experts agree that the benefits of quitting outweigh the potential
toxicity of nicotine found in NRT treatments
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