Health Promotion Essays On Smoking

The most recent data on tobacco use in Canadian provinces are based on national surveys conducted by Health Canada and Statistics Canada in 2013, which excluded the territories:[5]It is also known from other sources that sexual minority youth (LGBTQ) and Aboriginal/Indigenous youth have smoking rates that are up to five times higher than other adolescents.[6][7]While other forms of inhaled tobacco have been present for decades (Table 1), the recent increase in popularity of e-cigarettes is rapidly changing the way teenagers interact with tobacco products.

The most recent data on tobacco use in Canadian provinces are based on national surveys conducted by Health Canada and Statistics Canada in 2013, which excluded the territories:[5]It is also known from other sources that sexual minority youth (LGBTQ) and Aboriginal/Indigenous youth have smoking rates that are up to five times higher than other adolescents.[6][7]While other forms of inhaled tobacco have been present for decades (Table 1), the recent increase in popularity of e-cigarettes is rapidly changing the way teenagers interact with tobacco products.

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About 15% of Canadian children are exposed to second-hand smoke in their homes.[2]Canadian smoking rates have been steadily decreasing in all age groups since the early 1990s, but now seem to be stabilizing.

Therefore, tobacco use and second-hand tobacco smoke exposure are still critical national health concerns.

In fact, in the 2006/2007 Youth Smoking Survey, 13% of daily smokers reported that their main source of cigarettes was contraband.

Contraband sources account for 18% of cigarettes smoked daily by teens in Canada, with figures exceeding 25% in Quebec and Ontario.[12] In one Health Canada analysis, contraband cigarettes were shown to contain ingredients and a nicotine content similar to legal cigarettes.[13] Of particular concern is that contraband cigarettes are purchased at a lower cost (ie, minus the tax), rendering them more affordable for youth with limited financial means, and undermining legal controls, which are a proven method for reducing adolescent smoking.

Smoking kills more than 37,000 Canadians each year – six times more than vehicle collisions, suicides, homicides and AIDS combined.

Also, with the increasing popularity of electronic (e-)cigarettes, nicotine dependence remains an important and timely topic.The increasing popularity of alternative tobacco products and e-cigarettes is also creating new health challenges.Research has shown that the deleterious effects of nicotine and cigarette smoke are significant and long-lasting.Health care professionals have key responsibilities in preventing tobacco use among youth and their families, and need to know more about effective smoking prevention and cessation strategies.Clinicians need to integrate tobacco counselling into health assessments of teenagers and be aware of the roles that families, communities and governments can play in promoting tobacco-free environments.For more information, see the CPS statement “E-cigarettes: Are we renormalizing public smoking? Strategies to prevent smoking initiation in children and adolescents are reviewed in the present position statement, with focus on interventions that can be performed in the health care setting.Approaches to managing smoking cessation in adolescents are discussed in the practice point “Strategies to promote smoking cessation among adolescents”, also published in this issue.Also, data from a 12-year Canadian longitudinal cohort investigation suggest that:[26]Several studies looking at the impacts of early smoking initiation on the developing teenage brain have shown that nicotine induces persistent changes in neural connectivity in several brain areas, including the nucleus accumbens, the medial prefrontal cortex and the amygdala, all of which are involved with emotion regulation.[27] Adolescent smokers appear to be more sensitive to the rewarding effects of nicotine.They are also vulnerable to nicotine-elicited changes on synaptic interconnections, leading to higher risks for addiction and affective disorders in adulthood.[28]Chronic nicotine use in adolescence has also been shown to induce epigenetic changes that sensitize the brain to other drugs and increase the risks for future substance use.[29] Important individual differences appear to exist, such that some adolescents are at higher risk than others for smoking initiation, maintenance and nicotine-related neurological effects.[30] Studies conducted in animals suggest that nicotine consumption in adolescence increases impulsivity and decreases attention performance in the long term.[31] Many questions remain unanswered but health care providers should inform young smokers that the effects of nicotine on the adolescent brain are deleterious and long-lasting.A higher proportion of youth smokers 15 to 18 years of age buy their cigarettes in stores themselves, while almost one-half (44%) receive them for free from family, friends or other people.Of note, a substantial percentage in this age group (16%) report getting their cigarettes from ‘other’ sources, which include cigarettes purchased from friends and contraband suppliers.