The Reminder is making its archives back to 2003 available on our website. Please note that, due to technical limitations, archive articles are presented without the usual formatting.
As children move into adolescence, peer pressure begins to build and youth may start to test parental authority. For these reasons, adolescence is an extremely risky time for smoking to start, and it is important to continue to engage your kids in dialogue about the risks of smoking. Tips for Talking to Youth Aged 12 to 14 Listen to what your child has to say about smoking and ask them directly about the pressures they may be facing to smoke. Explain that there are other ways to express their individuality and maturity such as their choice of interests and hobbies, clothes, music and television shows. If they have at least one close friend who smokes, donÕt wait until you know your child has started to smoke. Instead, you might want to try asking something like ÒYour friend Chris, smokes, right? Does that make you feel tempted to smoke?Ó If you discover that your child has been using tobacco, donÕt panic or overreact! At this point, it is probably not enough to point out the health risks alone, you will need to come up with other negative facts about tobacco, such as the negative impact it has on physical fitness or personal hygiene. Tips for Talking to Youth Aged 15 to 19 Keep the conversation going! At this point you may think you have done your job as a parent and done enough to discourage your child from smoking. Unfortunately, youth continue to start smoking until they are into their early twenties. DonÕt stop now! Talk to your teens about their goals and values in life and how tobacco fits in or interferes with them. Talk about the effects of smoking on physical appearance (yellow teeth, bad breath, smelly clothes, impotence and early facial wrinkles, etc.). Remind your teen that they are an important role model for younger children and suggest they become involved in anti-tobacco activities at school or a local tobacco control coalition. Point out the excessive cost of smoking. The cost of smoking one half of a pack a day, could be almost $7,000 during high school. Other Things You Can Do Pay attention to your childÕs choice of friends and whether they smoke or their parents do. Encourage and support your childÕs involvement in sports and other activities. Youth who do well in school and participate in structured, extracurricular activities are less likely to smoke. Encourage your teen to get involved in tobacco control. They can either join an existing group in their region or province or start up a new group at their school.
