Despite the long term risk, tobacco use remains widespread among young people in Anne Arundel County. About 15% of teens smoke cigarettes regularly, and 2% use smokeless tobacco (MD Adolescent Survey 2004). The average age of a first-time smoker is just 13, and many are regular smokers by the time they start high school.

Also, 32% of Anne Arundel County households have minor children living with adult smokers. This increases chances of serious childhood illnesses - such as bronchitis and asthma - and also increases the likelihood that children will someday use tobacco themselves.

It's never too early to begin teaching children about the dangers of tobacco use. If you want to keep your child away from this deadly addiction, this Web page can help. You can also order free helpful publications to influence your child against tobacco use.

If your son or daughter already uses tobacco, this Web page gives you the resources you need to help them quit for good.

Remember, it is against the law to sell tobacco to kids under 18.

On this page, you'll find:

• What you can do to keep your child away from tobacco
• Protecting children from secondhand smoke
• How to talk with your child about tobacco
• What to tell your child about tobacco
• Facts about smoking among youth
• What young people think about smoking
• What to do if your son or daughter already smokes
• How to order free publications
• Links to other helpful sites

What you can do to keep your child away from tobacco

• Start by keeping your home smoke-free. If you smoke, don't smoke around your children - at home or in the car. Ask relatives or friends who smoke to "take it outside." Children exposed to secondhand smoke are sick more often and are more likely to develop coughs, bronchitis, pneumonia and middle ear infections. Children with asthma are especially in danger of having their condition get worse.


Maintaining a smoke-free home also sets a good example for your children. Parents who don't smoke are much less likely to have children who smoke.


• Talk often with your child about tobacco. Children of all ages - even preschoolers - welcome talks about important issues, and will listen to you and be influenced by what you say. Make this an ongoing conversation, and take advantage of every chance to bring up this subject. Below are tips on How to talk to your child and What to tell your child.


Learn To Live offers the Smoke-Free Kids Activity Kit to help parents teach their young children about tobacco. The kit includes information on secondhand smoke, how to start talking about tobacco, and activities you and your child can do together. Request your free kit below.


• Stay involved in your child's life. Get to know your child's friends, especially if you have teens. Young people whose friends are nonsmokers seldom smoke, but almost half of those with at least two friends who smoke are smokers themselves.



• Discuss ways to say no if your child's friends offer cigarettes or smokeless tobacco.



• Encourage your son or daughter to get involved in sports or other healthy group activities that discourage smoking.



• If you smoke, try to quit. Young people are three times more likely to smoke if their parents and at least one older sibling smoke than if no one at home smokes. If they already smoke, make quitting "a team effort."


Learn To Live offers a free Quit-Smoking Kit for adults and a free Quit Kit for youths. These helpful kits give you easy-to-follow advice for quitting and staying off cigarettes. Request your free kit below.

Protecting children from secondhand smoke

• Children in a home with secondhand smoke breathe as much smoke each day as if they smoked three cigarettes
• Children riding in a car filled with secondhand smoke for one hour breathe as much smoke as if they had smoked three cigarettes

• Miscarriage or early delivery
• Having a low-birth weight baby
• Having children who develop Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD)

• Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS)
• Ear infections
• Hearing problems
• Asthma
• Other upper respiratory infections such as bronchitis and pneumonia

• Make your car and home smoke-free zones. Blowing smoke away from children, going into another room to smoke, or opening a window doesn't solve the problem. The smoke still circulates in the air, and children still breathe it
• Never smoke or allow smoking near your children
• Encourage public places to become smoke-free
• Only use non-smoking childcare providers

How to talk with your child about tobacco

• Be clear and direct. Use simple language that matches your child's age and level of understanding.



• Don't lecture. Try for an easy give-and-take as you talk.



• Listen carefully to your child, and try not to interrupt. This will show them that you respect their thoughts and feelings.



• If you don't have the answer to a question, say so. Then promise to find the answer, and make sure you follow up.

What to tell your child about tobacco

• Make sure your child understands your rules about tobacco. Parents who jointly and continuously voice strong disapproval and concerns about smoking and chewing tobacco have been more successful with keeping their child from using tobacco products.



• Talk about the short-term effects - smoking makes you unattractive, is expensive, hurts your sports performance, and bothers and harms other people.



• Explain the long-term health risks - emphysema, bronchitis, mouth, throat and lung cancer, premature death. If a relative or a family friend has died or been made sick by tobacco use, mention that person as an example.



• Explain what addiction is and that the nicotine in all tobacco products is as addictive as heroin and cocaine. Help your child understand that once a person gets hooked on nicotine, it is very hard to quit.



• Encourage your child to choose healthy friends. Explain that a true friend would never pressure anyone into using tobacco.



• Point out that most young people do not smoke. Only about 15% in Anne Arundel County are regular smokers.



• If you smoke, talk about how smoking has harmed you, how hard it has been to quit, and why you don't want your child to use tobacco.



• Tobacco advertising can be a dangerous influence with children. Cigarette ads promise many benefits of smoking such as pleasure, independence, popularity, and personal attractiveness. Point out tobacco advertising to your son or daughter and explain how tobacco companies use these false promises to trick people - especially young people - into smoking.


When smoking is shown on TV or in movies, let your child know that tobacco companies often pay actors to smoke to make smoking look attractive.


• See the facts on smoking among youth below for more help in talking to your child.

Facts about smoking among youth

• In Anne Arundel County, about 15% of all teens smoke regularly, and about 32% of teens have tried cigarettes.



• Nearly 23% of high school seniors smoke, as well as 12% of tenth graders and 11% of eighth graders.



• Every day, 6,000 American children start using tobacco products. That's more than two million children every year. Half of them will become daily smokers.



• The average young smoker starts smoking by age 13, and becomes a daily smoker by age 14 1/2. Children who start tobacco use at an early age are most likely to continue to smoke into adult life.



• Nicotine addiction in young smokers is as severe as for adults, and they have similar difficulty quitting. More than half of all high school seniors who smoke are unable to quit, and more than 70% of them still smoke eight years later.



• Cigarettes are a "gateway drug." Teenagers who smoke cigarettes are 15 times more likely to use other dangerous substances, such as cocaine, marijuana and heroin.

Other health facts

• Smokers die an average of 12 years sooner than nonsmokers.



• Every year, more than 400,000 Americans die from smoking-related illnesses. That's one in five deaths.



• Smoking kills more Americans each year than alcohol, cocaine, heroin, homicide, suicide, car accidents, fire and AIDS combined.

What young people think about smoking

• Young people are more concerned about the social effects of smoking - bad breath, smelly clothes, and appearing unattractive - than they are about the health risks.



• Short-term health risks, such as shortness of breath and smoker's cough, concern them more than long-term health hazards, such as cancer and emphysema.



• Young people think more people smoke than actually do. Those who think "everybody does it" are more likely to smoke themselves.



• In a government study, 78% of teens who had never smoked said they strongly disliked being around smokers, and 94% preferred to date nonsmokers.



• Many youths do not know that chewing tobacco is as addicting as cigarettes. A two-can-a-week user gets as much nicotine as a pack-and-a-half-a-day smoker. Chewing tobacco can also cause mouth and throat cancer.



• Some youths think that cigars, smokeless tobacco, and bidis (bee-dees) are safer than cigarettes. They don't know that all of these products contain addictive nicotine and can cause cancer and other serious health problems.



• Some youths think the "natural tobacco" products promoted by some tobacco companies are safer. But they're just as addictive and deadly as other tobacco products.

What to do if your son or daughter already smokes

Signs of tobacco use

If you smell smoke on your child's clothing, ask before you react. Maybe your child has been hanging around with friends who smoke or has simply tried a cigarette. Many try a cigarette at one time or another, but most do not go on to become regular smokers. Some other signs of tobacco use include: coughing, throat irritation, hoarseness, bad breath, stained teeth and shortness of breath. Smokeless tobacco can also stain teeth and clothes.

Although it may be tempting to get angry if you find your son or daughter using tobacco, it's probably the least effective method of dealing with it. Instead, talking together about tobacco use is the key:

• Find out why smoking appeals to your child, and examine it honestly.



• Don't lecture on the long-term consequences of smoking, such as lung cancer. Young people often do not understand how their current behaviors can affect their future well-being.



• Tell you child about the short-term problems with smoking: shortness of breath, bad breath, yellow teeth and smelly clothes.



• Remind your child that it is illegal for persons under 18 to purchase or possess cigarettes. Underage persons who possess or use tobacco products can be issued a citation for a fine of $25 to $100. In Anne Arundel County, youths are also required to attend Teen Court and will be ordered to complete community service.



• Maintain your rules about smoking. For example, if you don't allow smoking at home, don't let your children smoke in the house. Studies have shown that continuous disapproval to smoking from both parents reduces the likelihood of their child becoming a smoker.



• If your child says "I can quit anytime I want," ask him to show you by going cold turkey for a week.



• Don't nag your son or daughter to quit. Ultimately, the decision is your child's. Focus on helping them to make a wise one.



• Help your child develop a quitting plan and offer information and resources. Get your child a free Quit Kit from Learn To Live.



• Reinforce your child's decision to quit with praise, an increased allowance, or greater responsibility or freedom.



• Examine your child's allowance. His or her allowance, especially if generous, may be helping him or her to cover the cost of tobacco products.



• Remind your child that tobacco products are expensive and the tobacco tax increases the cost of tobacco products.

Your child's doctor may also be able to help. Ask your doctor to talk to your child and suggest resources for quitting.

How to order free publications

Anne Arundel County residents can order free kits and publications to help keep their children smoke-free, or to help them or their child quit smoking.

Links to other helpful sites

Visit these Web sites to learn more about keeping your son or daughter smoke-free.

Let's work together to promote healthier living in Anne Arundel County.