Aaron Callananwonders why young people ignore the warnings and continue to smoke
SMOKING used to be something that only a gentleman did, and was considered a sign of high society and wealth. It was a status thing. But, if it is no longer such, why are people doing it these days? The nicotine helps soothe the mind to a certain extent and thus helps to relieve stress. This is why most adults smoke. But why teenagers? We don’t have the same pressures or expectations put on us that adults do (even though we do face some problems that adults don’t).
Peer pressure is an obvious factor. If someone cool or popular starts smoking, you’ll do your best to fit in, to be part of the “in” crowd. But this doesn’t answer the question: Why are teenagers smoking?
It’s because smoking is everywhere. Even though smoking isn’t advertised openly in the mainstream, many people take it up from home. If young children see a parent smoking, they’re going to have an image of smoking imprinted on their minds from an early age. Worse, they won’t see the bad effects of it unless the parent is hospitalised or dies as a direct result of smoking. If they have thisstate of mind in their teen years, all the anti-smoking campaigns in the world won’t make a difference. If they want to look cool and are influenced by a smoker at home, they’ll probably smoke themselves.
Another problem is that cigarettes are often glorified by musicians and characters in movies. Many rap videos show people with huge Cuban cigars or rolled up cigarettes in their mouths. In the film Rambo, Sylvester Stallone was paid to smoke as it suited John Rambo’s image. Many rock stars are depicted with a cigarette while playing, one example being Slash of Guns ’N’ Roses and Velvet Revolver fame. If smoking is one of the ways you can be like these people,
why not do it? This kind of imitation has led to teenagers smoking for generations. It’s been happening for years. Didn’t Humphrey Bogart and James Dean smoke? Celebrities play a huge part in influencing their teenage fans.
Image is one of the most important things in life when you are a teenager. If you look cool, maybe then you’ll get the girl, the friends, the life and everything else you want. Your ideal image determines a lot of decisions you make as a teenager. Maybe if you want to look tough and like a real hard man, you’ll smoke, talk in a voice that isn’t yours and hang around corners. Maybe if you keep to yourself and smoke and act moody, people will be drawn to you.
Sadly, despite all the education given and all the facts presented, teenagers will continue to smoke. At the end of the day, it comes down to self-confidence and the power to say “No”.
Aaron Callanan is a TY student at St Kevin’s CBS, Finglas, Dublin
