Help Put Out the Butt in Teen Smoking

You could probably walk around your neighborhood and see groups of teenagers smoking. In fact, there 6,000 teens that start smoking everyday and 3,000 of them will make the choice to continue smoking. Throughout this essay, I will give you facts on why it is smart to either stop smoking now or never start.

You probably ask yourself, "Why do teens smoke?" There are many explanations to that question. Many teens say they started because of peer pressure or others say it was something they have always wanted to try. Either way, if a person smokes five or more cigarettes a day, it is most likely that they will become a regular smoker. On the other hand, statistics say that if smoking does not become a regular habit by age 19, there is a ninety- percent chance that it never will.

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has mandated that billboards or ads supporting smoking or vending machines are prohibited from places that children under 18 visit regularly and if a business is caught selling cigarettes to minors they can be fined or have to serve jail time. Though the FDA has ruled out all opportunities for cigarette ads to influence minors to smoke, teens say smoking ads have nothing to do with why they smoke. Although kids claim that, studies have confirmed that teens are 3 times more easily influenced to smoke a specific brand than adults.

1.5 million teenagers will eventually die from an illness caused by smoking. Smoking also causes all kinds of cancers, asthma, emphysema, yellow teeth, premature wrinkles, and worse of all, death. People still smoke regardless of what studies and reports prove.

When asked why teens do not quit, one claims that it is especially hard when all the closest people around you smoke. Once you start smoking, it is hard to stop. Parents cannot just tell their child to stop smoking. They could yell, they could punish their child, but no matter what, your child will find a way to continue smoking. I mean, they find a way to buy cigarettes, right?

Smoking is a disgusting, addictive habit. It leaves a horrible stench on the smokers possessions and it not only endangers their own health, but people around them also. I hope that all this information has made you think twice about picking up a cigarette. You only have one life, and unlike any cigarette merchandise, it is non-refundable.