Everyone wants to lead a normal and healthy life, so do you really want to try tobacco. A healthy life includes following a nutritional diet, getting enough sleep at night, and being physically active or participating in sports. But there are certain habits that pose a danger to one’s health and cause devastating effects on their well-being. Smoking tobacco is one such harmful habit, and it is done by lots of people across the world.
There is a reason to be concerned about tobacco usage because the number of people who die due to smoking is alarmingly high. About 1,200 people lose their lives for being addicted to tobacco. Therefore, it is very important that people think about the harmful effects the next time they light up again.
There are various attempts being made to reduce tobacco usage, especially among young people. The awareness about the ill-effects of tobacco is being spread among the youth groups or school clubs. However, the number of tobacco smokers does not seem to go down.
The number of school students who smoke tobacco has reached up to millions. In particular, about 600,000 middle-school students and 3,000,000 high school students are victims of tobacco smoking.
The age group of 18 to 25, who are the young adults, are the most vulnerable ones to start this habit. Almost all smokers begin the habit of tobacco smoking by the age of 18. This obviously shows that young adults should be the primary focus for carrying out the prevention efforts of smoking.
We should be explaining to these young people about the hard times they may have to undergo once they begin smoking. The complete avoidance of smoking is the best thing to do, because of the tedious processes involved to quit the addiction of smoking.
It is not fair to completely blame the youth for their habitual smoking. Everyone holds responsible for their own acts. The influences of the social and environmental factors could be tempting them to do so.
The attractive images and messages for promoting tobacco by its manufacturers create a false image of tobacco smoking in the minds of young people. The peer pressure forces the young ones to start the habit of smoking, as they assume it as a cool thing to do.
They are exposed to smoking via various mediums like the internet, video games, family members, and so on. Among these, movies play a critical role in promoting smoking among young people. The smoking by the artists in the movies encourages their young fans to follow in their footsteps, eventually falling prey to smoking.
Although there are stricter rules being followed nowadays in the movies, there are still movies that contain the images of smoking. Strangely, some of these movies are rated for children and young adults, generally rated as G, PG, or PG-13.
The health issues related to tobacco smoking can be awful. It can cause either immediate health problems or life-long issues. Nicotine addiction is one of the most dangerous effects of tobacco smoking. It causes a person to smoke for a long time and poses health issues that cannot be reversed.
Young smokers can suffer from serious cardiovascular damages and potentially die earlier due to prolonged usage of tobacco. The lung growth is ceased and the functions of the lungs are adversely affected. Lung damage can last for a long time and the person can fall victim to chronic obstructive pulmonary disease in the later stage of life.
The young people should understand about the ill-effects of tobacco before ever attempting to smoke.
More than anyone, young people can be informed by their own parents. The parents should role models by trying to avoid smoking or even stop smoking in case they do. They should try to avoid any friends or relatives that smoke in front of their adolescent children.
The parents should also minimize exposure to the media that promotes tobacco usages through ads and visuals. Also, the parents can talk to their young adult children about the problems they can face with smoking. Such friendly talks can help these young people to understand and make an informed decision.
It is clear from the above discussions that the prevention of tobacco smoking or any addictive drugs is the best way to avoid any health problems. Even if a person is already addicted to smoking, he/she should stop smoking as early as possible to avoid any further health issues.
There are lots of organizations and various tobacco prevention/ tobacco control programs in schools and colleges that will help the teenagers stay informed about the damaging effects of tobacco smoking.