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Home › Articles › Development › No Butts About It

No Butts About It

Talking to Your Kids About Smoking

By Teri Brown

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Another proactive stance is making sure your child has good social skills. "Children who have difficulty making friends are at a higher risk for all sorts of negative behavior," Dr. Shapiro says. "They are more likely to start smoking than the child who has a satisfactory social life."

Kick Butts Day

In many ways it is becoming easier for parents to talk to their children about tobacco and addiction because of a multifaceted effort made by the media, our schools and organizations like the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids in getting the word out. The Campaign for Tobacco Free-Kids holds an annual event called Kick Butts Day, which encourages kids to become involved.

Holly Aprea, youth advocacy and partnerships associate for Tobacco-Free Kids, says that events like Kick Butts Day not only serve as a chance to educate kids about the dangers of tobacco but also act as an opportunity for kids to take matters into their own hands and achieve real results in the field of tobacco prevention, control and education. "Kick Butts Day is a great opportunity for kids and parents to learn more about this important issue and stay tobacco-free," she says. "It offers young people the opportunity to take action and become leaders in the fight against tobacco."

As children grow and become more autonomous, the choices they make will affect the rest of their lives. It is our job as parents to give them all the tools necessary to turn and walk away from any temptation they may have to experiment with this highly addictive and destructive substance.

Tips for Talking About It

The following tips, provided by Michael D. Smith, assistant professor of psychology for Susquehanna University, will help you talk to your children about this very important topic.

  • Talking to children is not effective unless they see parents, themselves, putting the messages into practice.
  • Smoking and other drug use are often associated with peer pressure. In children between the ages of 12 and 15, peer pressure has a greater impact on children with low self-esteem, children who are overly stressed and children where there are family problems. Reducing these negatives in children's lives reduces drug use and smoking. Kids who already feel good about themselves have little reason to do other things to make them feel or seem "cool."
  • Talking with kids openly about smoking – and other topics – lets them know that parents care and are available. Being clear about your values and expectations without being overly moralistic is the best approach.
  • Recognizing that adolescents have more autonomy is important. So discussions rather than lectures work better.
  • Recognizing that parents of adolescents are less the "boss" and more the "consultant" is also helpful. Parents still hold a great deal of influence but need to let the adolescent be able to make reasonable choices in order for growth to occur normally. Adolescents who are guided rather than controlled through complicated choices like whether or not to smoke tend to make better choices.


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