Got a Minute? Give it to your kid! |
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What can parents do to prevent the use of tobacco and other drugs?
Develop and sustain a healthy relationship with your child.
Start by simply spending time together.
Monitor their free time.
Set and enforce rules.
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Parenting is one of the best tools against risky behavior, including smoking, which kills 1 in 3 people it hooks.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
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Got a Minute? Get into your kid's head! Here are 10 ways you can get into your child's head:
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Catch your child doing something right.
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Prove that you listen.
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Schedule time for you and your child.
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Post a family calendar.
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Share regular family meals.
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Share your day.
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Write your child a note.
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Ask your child's opinion.
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Give your child responsibilities.
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Many factors influence a young person's decision to smoke or not smoke,
including glamorizing tobacco in the media peer pressure from friends and PARENTS.
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Read the study below about box office hits.) |
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Got a Minute? Give it to your kid.
Eat more family meals together. It doesn't have to be fancy. Make a simple meal. What's important is that you sit together and talk about your kid's day.
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Important facts for parents of pre-teens and teenagers
In general, young adolescents ...
- learn better by interacting than listening
- seek interaction with adults in activities valued by the young person
- Focus (obsess) on physical, social development
- Are sensitive, vulnerable and emotiona
- Are open to influence from significant others and new experiences
- Often feel alienated
Source: National Middle School Association, October 2000
Should parents be concerned about their children using tobacco?
Yes!
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Nicotine is just as additctive as heroin .
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70% of adolescent smokers wish they had never started. They experience withdrawal symptoms when they try to quit. Young people vastly underestimate the addictiveness of nicotine. Of daily smokers who think they will not smoke in five years, nearly 75% are still smoking 5-6 years later.
Risk-taking can "snowball" ~ Teens who smoke are:
- 3 times more likely to use alcohol
- 8 times more likely to use marijuana
- 22 times more likely to use cocaine
Smoking is associated with other risky behavior such as:
- unprotected sex
- fighting
- depression
In a 1999-2000 study of the top 50 box office hits:
- 66% featured tobacco use
- 34% featured cigars
- 48% contained pro-tobacco messages
- 26% had anti-tobacco messages
Source: American Lung Association of Sacramento Emigrant Trails, Thumbs Up! Thumbs Down! Annual Report Card 2001
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