Tips for Parents & Educators on Smoking

Overview

Most teens today have been taught that smoking is dangerous, and it’s important to reinforce this at home. Family is the number one indicator for how children build their values (even if it may not always seem like that’s true). Learning about how dangerous cigarettes can be from their parents is key.

Reasons Not to Smoke

Some facts your teens should hear from you:

  • Addiction to cigarettes can last a lifetime and can cause emphysema, heart problems and cancer.
  • Cigarettes contain many toxic substances: tar, carbon monoxide, chemicals like DDT, arsenic and formaldehyde
  • Tobacco causes more health problems and early deaths than all illegal drugs combined.
  • Addiction is difficult to predict, and “just trying it” can become something more very quickly.
  • Even hanging out with friends while they smoke can be dangerous. Getting exposed to secondhand smoke carries the same risks as smoking.

Beyond the health risks, there are some specific problems that smoking can cause that are important to teens:

  • Cigarettes are expensive and just keep getting more expensive.
  • They give you bad breath.
  • They make your clothes, hair and skin stink.
  • Cigarettes will stain your teeth and hands.
  • Smoking can give you premature wrinkles.
  • Smoking can make it hard to breathe, which makes it hard to be involved in sports and other physical activities.

I Want to Quit!

If your teen is already smoking and has decided they want to quit, celebrate with them! This is an important decision, and it’s good that they’ve made it. In order to keep them on track, here are some activities you can suggest to your teen:

  • Make quitting a specific goal. Have them pick a date to quit that is about 2-4 weeks away and make sure this isn’t a particularly stressful time for them.
  • Have them make a list of reasons they want to quit that they can carry with them. This will strengthen their resolve at difficult times.
  • Have them throw away all smoking paraphernalia. It’s good if they do this on their own, instead of having you enforce it. This gives them ownership of quitting.
  • Be a source of support for your child. Let them know that if they’re having a nicotine craving, they can call you to talk them through it.
  • Make suggestions about things they can do when they have a craving: chew gum, call you or a friend, chew sunflower seeds or go somewhere they can’t smoke (like the movies).
  • Help them to celebrate when they do quit. Consider rewarding them with something special: a trip to the movies or out to dinner.