The Grim Reality Of Teenage Smoking

On the occasion of the World Tobacco Day observed on May 31st, Dr Niveditha Ravuri, Paediatrician and Co-Founder of Caremotto.com, talks about the menace of teenage smoking.

Q1. What are the reasons for teenage smoking?

A. Teenage smoking is on the rise. Many children are getting addicted to smoking at an early age. Here are a few reasons

Imitating their parent, in case either one of them is a smoker. They prefer doing what the adults do.Teenagers like to experiment what they see.

Peer pressure has its impact on teenagers. Often, they feel a need to be a part of the peer group.They see their friends enjoying it and since it is easily available, they start using it.

Advertisements and Movies have a larger impact on teenagers as they watch their favourite heroes smoking. Smoking is portrayed as a very enjoyable experience and indirectly encourage teenagers to smoke.

Many teenagers who come from broken families face a lot of emotional disturbances. They either take to smoking or alcohol and consider it a way out for them to escape from harsh realities of life.

Dr Niveditha Ravuri,

Paediatrician and Co-Founder of Caremotto.com

Q2. What is the percentage of boys and girls who are into teenage smoking?

A. Worldwide, it is estimated that boys smoke nearly 5 times as much as girls but ratios of girls to boys smoking prevalence rates vary dramatically across countries.

In high-income countries like USA, Australia, Canada and most countries of Western Europe, girls smoke at nearly the same rate as boys. However, in many low and middle-income countries, about 61 percent of boys are o to be smokers compared to 42 percent of girls.

Q3. What is the effect on their physical and mental health?

A. Smoking affects the health of everyone involved, even those standing close by. However, it affects young adults and teens more profoundly.

Young people who smoke suffer from shortness of breath 3 times more often than those who do not smoke. Lungs of young adults who take up smoking do not develop to their full capacity. Most of them will succumb to one or multiple forms of health complications.

According to the WHO, early signs of heart disease and stroke are detected in young people who smoke. Young smokers are at greater risk of developing cancer. Tobacco’s psychological effects include changes in a person’s mood, behaviour and mental health.

It is found that mood, anxiety, antisocial personality disorder and substance use disorders are highly comorbid among smoking teens. Cigarette smoking during adolescence may increase the likelihood that these teens will develop a variety of anxiety disorders in early adulthood.

Q4. Why are the teenagers still lured to it despite the incidence of cancer? Are they aware or is it that despite the awareness they want to still try it?

A. Teenagers who got into smoking due to various reasons, peer pressure being most important factor find it difficult to withdraw suddenly.

Teenagers usually like to experiment and they strongly believe that they don’t get affected, especially by the health dangers which can occur in the near future.

Another important reason for continuing smoking is an addiction. Nicotine in cigarettes increases pleasurable feelings and followed by subsequent craving and withdrawal.

To cope up with the withdrawal symptoms, they tend to get back smoking.

Q5. Many fathers do not smoke in front of their sons but it is not that the son is not aware of their smoking habit.

Given the habit of the parent, the son is relaxed that if the father can do it so can he. How can this behavioural change be brought about?

A. Children who are aware that their parent is a smoker are more unlikely to consider smoking as harmful. The incidence of teens who smoke is higher among whose parents are already smokers.

It's important for the parent to set a good role model by not smoking and if that is not possible, they sold try hard not to involve kids in their habit.

Asking kids to pick the cigarette pack from the car and place it on the table is equally dangerous as smoking in front of them. Parents should understand that young people will have formed their attitudes about smoking and alcohol, well before they have their first experience with them.

Q6. Most smokers get a kick due to smoking. How is one to substitute to that feeling? Why does it give them heroism feeling?

A. Nicotine in cigarettes is both a stimulant and depressant.Smoking gives a high as it increases dopamine secretion which increases pleasurable feeling. It initially increases the heart rate and makes people feel more alert. Then it causes depression and fatigue.

These withdrawal symptoms of nicotine make people crave another cigarette to perk up again. They get the heroic feel as they consider them grown up and they thick act cool just as heroes on screen.

Few substances like e-cigarettes and vape pens are being tried but not advisable as they too contain variable amounts of nicotine. Teens who want to quit should analyse their triggers as in any situation or a place provoking them to smoke. They will succeed if they try to break this link.

Q7. What is the percentage of smokers who have been successful in giving it up?

A. It's said that quitting smoking is the hardest thing to do. It was revealed in a study that just 6 percent of people who try to stub out their nicotine habit actually succeed in doing so. This is despite the fact that more than two-thirds of people who smoke want to quit because they know it's bad for them.

A recent study the US US found that nearly 69 percent of adult smokers wanted to quit last year and more than half tried.But when asked how many actually achieved their goal, the numbers plummeted.

Those who tried to quit could have doubled or tripled their chances by using medicine or seeking counselling. This was evident in the study which showed a success rate of 8.9 percent in those with a university-level degree and just 3.2 percent success rate in those who did not stay on a higher education.

8. What is the percentage of smokers in India at any given point of time of both the genders?

A. A study carried by the JAMA found that cigarette smoking among indianIndianas fallen from 33.8 percent to 29.8 percent in the last few years but there is a rise seen from 3 percent to 4.2 percent among Indian women within the same time frame.

In India, current tobacco use in any form is estimated to be 47.9 percent of males and 20.3 percent of females.