Advertisements Blamed for Teen Smoking

While there are many known negative side effects to smoking cigarettes, there are still thousands of teenagers who are willing to give it a try and many of those teenagers are becoming addicted to the habit forming cigarettes that they are trying. Studies show that the reason the vast majority of teenagers is trying cigarettes is because of the advertisements they see.

Within 1997 through 2004, the number of teenagers who smoked actually declined. However, within the past eight years, the decrease in teenage smoking began to decline as more teenagers are trying the cigarettes. It is believed that the number one reason why teenagers are giving these cigarettes a try is because there have been many more advertisements aimed specifically towards their particular age range.

While the United States government does ban the different tobacco companies from targeting teenagers within their advertisements, many of the advertisements are still made to specifically appeal to the younger generation, which includes many teenagers. They are changing the look of their cigarettes so that they are more visually appealing to the eyes of teenagers. This is not good because this is causing teens to give the cigarettes a try. Each year, the tobacco companies are spending millions of dollars, just about $10 million, on different types of advertisements and promotions as a way of trying to sell their tobacco products. The Surgeon General insists that it is this advertising that is causing teens to give cigarettes a try and many people agree, including the Altria Group. In fact, the Altria Group made a statement just the other day, in which they said they agree with the Surgeon General and that children should not be using tobacco products. They believe it is important for kids to not get their hands on tobacco products at all.

While the report shows advertisements for tobacco can lead to more use of tobacco product by teenagers, many insist that the report is not meant to point any fingers. The focus should not be solely on the advertisements but also on different ways to prevent teenagers from using these generally dangerous products. It is important to protect kids and teens by making sure they never use these products at all. Smoking cigarettes kills, on average, more than 400,000 people each year. People die from smoking cigarettes because it leads to cancer and other health conditions and diseases. Some of those problems include strokes and heart disease, along with an assortment of cancers. These teenagers need to know that tobacco is deadly and can cause harm. There is absolutely nothing good about these cigarettes or any other tobacco products.

As a way of preventing these teens and kids from using these tobacco products, many campaigns have been made against tobacco and cigarettes, showing kids and teens exactly what these products can do how much harm they can cause.