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How to prevent smoking in the youngest, in 6 keys

How to prevent smoking in the youngest, in 6 keys

March 20, 2024

The habits of tobacco consumption have become one of the biggest concerns in relation to public health , becoming a serious problem within society and despite the knowledge that is felt about its harmful effects.

However, to this day there continue to be a large number of smokers. Of all this population, adolescents have become one of the main focuses of tobacco consumption, existing according to the World Health Organization (WHO) About 150 million teenage smokers .

But there are several ways to prevent smoking in the youngest, starting by knowing the causes that lead them to develop this habit so harmful to health.


  • Related article: "6 keys to overcome a difficult childhood"

Main causes of smoking in young people

The reasons why the youngest population is interested in smoking are diverse. However, Knowing how to recognize them is of vital importance to be able to intervene on time and prevent smoking in young people and adolescents .

1. Social acceptance

Social acceptance is the main cause, and the best known, why a teenager begins to be interested in tobacco and consequently to want to try it. Starting to smoke has become a rite of integration through which young people feel they are part of a group.


Also, curiosity, the desire to experiment or the mere fact of believing that it is fashionable or that you can turn them into popular people, are also great incentives for young people to start smoking.

2. Smoking as a challenge to standards

The time of pre-puberty and adolescence are characterized by a strong feeling of rebellion , of provocation and of a great impulse of transgression. For all these young people, the fact of smoking is one of the fastest and most effective ways to face the rules and skip the rules imposed by their parents, society or school.

3. Smoking to relieve stress

Influenced by the beliefs that exist around smoking and tobacco itself, Many of the adolescents who decide to start smoking do so with the intention of mitigating the symptoms of stress and anxiety , when faced with situations of high pressure such as exam periods or when experiencing events with a high emotional load.


However, what they do not know is the reaction that smoking will have on their body, since they will feel relaxed for a few moments but then the feeling of stress will be greater, so they will need to smoke more and more.

4. Influence of parents

The whole volume of research conducted on tobacco consumption habits coincides with the fact that adolescents whose parents are smokers are at greater risk of becoming smokers and addicted to nicotine than the rest of young people.

Therefore, those smokers and adults with children must be aware of the influence that this habit has on their children, both directly through the consequences of tobacco smoke, and in the medium-long term causing an addiction in their children.

5. Media and advertising

Although it is currently prohibited to carry out any type of campaign that promotes smoking in adolescents, the scenes, either in cinema, television or the written press, in which any person or character lights a cigarette are more than usual .

Just as the influence of parents on smoking has been demonstrated, there is ample evidence that advertisements and the media have the capacity to increase the desire to smoke in adolescents.

6. Lack of information

Although more and more campaigns are being carried out to prevent smoking, both in adolescents and adults, the myths and false beliefs that benefit smoking still persist in the collective mind .

All these erroneous but very popular beliefs get that the negative consequences of the tobacco are buried by the positive image that still has of this.

Advice for the prevention of smoking in young people

One of the most important factors when it comes to preventing smoking is that of prevent teenagers from starting smoking, trying to avoid the first consumption . The reason is that adolescents start smoking for the above reasons without knowing the consequences of it, and not being aware of the level of addiction that can lead to it.

Some tips or means to prevent young people from becoming addicted to smoking are the following.

1. Provide information

As in any other type of awareness campaign, The first and possibly the most important step is to provide information to young people about smoking .

It is obvious that the entire population, regardless of age, is aware that smoking has a large number of negative consequences for the health of the person. However, it seems that just knowing is not enough.

Bearing this in mind, it is very important to facilitate and provide the younger population with the effects and real consequences of smoking, including the diseases that this can cause, the effects on physical and mental deterioration, and the percentages of deaths that exist. for causes related to smoking.

2. Psychoeducar

Another measure that must be adopted is that of Provide information about the psychological effects of cigarette smoking .

Since the harmful effects of tobacco usually appear in the medium to long term, a young person can start smoking with the illusion of quitting before these effects appear. Therefore, it is essential to report on the addictive potential of this, on how the mechanisms of addiction work and on the short-term consequences of starting smoking or doing it habitually.

3. Lead by example

As mentioned above, one of the reasons why young people start smoking is by pure imitation, either through parents, a family member, friends , etc.

Unfortunately, in many cases it is not possible to lead by example, since in a large number of occasions the adults surrounding the youngest person are already habitual tobacco users.

In any case, it is of vital importance that those people in whom the responsibility of intervening or interacting with the youth rests are able to set an example and not smoke in front of the youngest ones.

4. Encourage reasoning

This measure consists of allowing young people to develop a critical reasoning about tobacco , leaving it, after providing objective information, to issue their own judgments and assessments regarding smoking.

5. Teach to say "no"

One of the most common situations a teenager encounters is one in which a friend or acquaintance offers him a cigarette. The lack of emotional education and assertive techniques, along with the fear of being rejected, cause that in most cases the adolescent ends up accepting .

Therefore, providing skills that allow them to say "no" and reject the use of tobacco without feeling bad about it are essential to prevent young people from starting to smoke.

6. Promote physical activity

The promotion of healthy lifestyles , in which it is included that the adolescent follow healthy lifestyles and practice some type of physical exercise is a very useful tool to prevent the arrival of tobacco consumption habits in adolescents.

A young person motivated by sports and physical health is less likely to engage in practices that are harmful to his health, which also includes smoking.


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