Where Kids Get Their Smokes

Tobacco products often aren't hard for teens to come by. They can usually bum a cigarette from friends or sometimes even buy smokes or smokeless tobacco from retailers that unknowingly, or carelessly, sell to minors.

To try to pinpoint where, exactly, kids get their tobacco, researchers took a look at records of 8,879 random compliance checks in one county in Washington state over a 4-year period. For the checks, 91 14- to 17-year-olds posed as customers trying to buy tobacco to make sure various retailers and restaurants were complying with the state's age requirements for tobacco sales.

Turns out, convenience stores selling gas were the most likely to sell tobacco to minors, say the researchers, who cited multitasking and the quick gas-n-go nature of the business as likely reasons. Grocery stores were next in line for underage tobacco sales. And clerks who were female or under 18 had "very high" sales to kids and teens.

What This Means to You

Regardless of where kids get their tobacco, it's important for them to understand that experimentation can quickly turn into a highly addictive habit.

Although occasionally smoking at parties or while hanging out may seem like no big deal to teens, they can become hooked within days of a first encounter with the nicotine in tobacco, which can be as addictive as cocaine or heroin. Studies have shown that young smokers also are more likely to experiment with marijuana, cocaine, heroin, or other illegal drugs.

To help discourage your kids from ever being tempted to inhale:

• Establish firm rules — and consequences — when it comes to using tobacco.
• Ask what they find appealing — or unappealing — about smoking and patiently listen to their responses. Show your kids that you value their opinions.
• Arm them with ways to respond to peer pressure. Some kids may feel confident simply saying "no" to smoking. But also offer alternative responses like, "I hate the way it makes me look" or "I want to stay in shape for soccer."
• Encourage kids to walk away from friends who don't respect their decision to not smoke.
• Explain that there's a reason smoking is restricted or banned in almost all public places — it's bad for everyone's health and causes serious, even fatal diseases.
• Emphasize that each time a smoker lights up, that single cigarette takes about 5 to 20 minutes off the person's life (which can add up to at least 14 fewer years on the earth overall).

But it can be tough for kids and teens to care about what might happen to them in the future. That's why it's key to discuss how smoking can negatively change the way they look and feel now. Talking about the effects tobacco use could have today may hit home far more than warnings about long-term consequences.

You can put things in perspective by explaining that smoking cigarettes can cause current problems like:

• pale, wrinkly skin
• yellow teeth
• stained clothes
• bad-smelling breath and clothes
• a nagging, unattractive cough
• more colds
• feeling tired or cranky
• trouble breathing, making it harder to be physically active and play sports
• an emptier wallet — smoking is really expensive

But don't wait to talk about the dangers of tobacco until the peer pressure of adolescence kicks in. Start the discussions early on and continue the no-smoking message throughout childhood and well into the teen years.

Source: "Youth Tobacco Sales in a Metropolitan County: Factors Associated With Compliance," American Journal of Preventive Medicine, August 2007.