How to Talk to Teens About Smoking
Many people start smoking in during their teenage years and stay hooked on the habit throughout their adult lives. You need to talk to teens about smoking because ads, peer pressure and other factors expose them to it all the time.
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Instructions
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Start speaking with your children about smoking before they reach their teenage years. Depending on their schools, social settings and home environments, kids can be exposed to smoking well before high school.
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Discuss the social pressure for teens to start smoking. Tell your daughter that many kids start to smoke because they think it makes them look older and help them fit in with different crowds.
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Bring up the health dangers of smoking during your talk. Explain that there are plenty of short-term physical problems, like shortness of breath and discoloration of the skin and teeth. Remind him that even casual smoking can make it difficult to excel at sports and even cause stamina problems when walking around town with friends.
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Talk to teens about the seriousness of nicotine addiction. Describe how just one cigarette can create a physical dependence in the body and even teens will have a hard time kicking the habit. Make it clear that addiction can cause irritation and depression while the body goes through withdrawal.
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Spell out the long-term effects of smoking if your previous points haven't had an impact on your teens. Talk to them about the increased risk of cancer due to smoking and how the mortality rate for smokers is very high. Tell them that second-hand smoke can also cause health problems, so they should try and deter their friends from smoking.
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Explain to your teens that the peer pressure to smoke will be strongest during high school and maybe college, but if they can avoid the habit during that time, their chances of starting smoking are significantly decreased.
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Find out what steps your teens' schools are taking to discourage youth smoking. At the very least, students should talk about the habit in depth during their health classes and the school should be proactive about preventing smoking on its grounds and at sporting events.
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Tips & Warnings
Your first talks about smoking should just be simple discussions. Lots of teens have already had health classes about smoking, so they may just need to hear you speak out against it.
Watch for signs that your teen has started smoking and give her more lectures about it. Bring up health risks, the cost of smoking and the dangers of addiction.
