Tobacco Alcohol and Youth - Tobacco And Health

Health Consequences of Early Tobacco Use

The likelihood of future health problems due to the use of tobacco, especially cigarettes, is a matter of great concern. According to the CDC of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), and the 2004 Surgeon General's Report: The Health Consequences of Smoking, the use of smokeless tobacco and smoking are both closely associated with health problems such as heart disease, lung disease, and cancer.

John K. Wiencke et al., in "Early Age at Smoking Initiation and Tobacco Carcinogen DNA Damage in the Lung" (Journal of the National Cancer Institute, April 1999), indicate that the age at which smoking is initiated is a significant factor in the risk of developing lung cancer. Smoking in the teen years appears to cause permanent genetic changes in the lungs, increasing the risk of lung cancer—even if the smoker quits. The younger a person starts smoking, the more lasting damage is done to his or her lungs. Such damage is less likely among smokers who start in their twenties.

An earlier study, "Preventing Tobacco Use among Young People: A Report of the Surgeon General—Executive Summary" (Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, March 1994), indicated that cigarette smoking during adolescence seems to retard lung growth and reduce maximum lung function. As a result, young smokers are less likely than their nonsmoking peers to be physically fit and more likely to experience shortness of breath, coughing spells, wheezing, and overall poorer health. These health problems pose a clear risk for developing other chronic conditions in adulthood, such as chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, including emphysema and chronic bronchitis. Early smoking has also been linked to an increased risk of cardiovascular diseases, such as high cholesterol and triglyceride levels, atherosclerosis (arterial plaque), and early onset of heart disease. Teenagers who smoke are also three times more likely than nonsmokers to use alcohol, eight times more likely to use marijuana, and twenty-two times more likely to use cocaine.

Smokeless tobacco also has undesirable health effects on young users. Adolescent use is linked to the development of periodontal disease, soft-tissue damage, and oral cancers. In addition, young people who use smokeless tobacco are more likely than their nonusing peers to become cigarette smokers.

PROJECTED SMOKING-RELATED DEATHS.

According to 2004 Surgeon General's Report: The Health Consequences of Smoking, cigarette smoking is the leading cause of preventable death in the United States and produces substantial health-related economic costs to society. The report noted that smoking caused an estimated 440,200 deaths in the United States each year from 1995-1999.

The percentage of high school students who claimed to be regular smokers declined from 36.4% in 1997 to 28.5% in 2001. The CDC estimates that more than five thousand people under eighteen try smoking for the first time each day; roughly half of them are thought to become daily smokers. Kids are believed to smoke nine hundred million packs of cigarettes each year. If current rates continue, an estimated 6.4 million people under eighteen will die prematurely from smoking-related diseases (Tobacco Control State Highlights 2002: Impact and Opportunity, Atlanta, GA: CDC).

TABLE 6.8
Trends in disapproval of drug use by eighth and tenth graders, 1991-2003
DO YOU DISAPPROVE OF PEOPLE WHO …
SOURCE: Adapted from Lloyd D. Johnston, Patrick M. O'Malley, Jerald G. Bachman, and John E. Schulenberg, "Table 6. Trends in Disapproval of Drug Use by Eighth and Tenth Graders, 1991-2003," in Monitoring the Future: National Results on Adolescent Drug Use—Overview of Key Findings, 2003, The University of Michigan Institute for Social Research and U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, National Institute on Drug Abuse, June 2004, http://www.monitoringthefuture.org/pubs/monographs/overview2003.pdf (accessed March 3, 2005)

TABLE 6.9
Trends in disapproval of drug use by twelfth graders, 1990-2003
DO YOU DISAPPROVE OF PEOPLE (WHO ARE 18 OR OLDER) DOING EACH OF THE FOLLOWING?
SOURCE: Adapted from Lloyd D. Johnston, Patrick M. O'Malley, Jerald G. Bachman, and John E. Schulenberg, "Table 7. Long-Term Trends in Disapproval of Drug Use by Twelfth Graders," in Monitoring the Future: National Results on Adolescent Drug Use—Overview of Key Findings, 2003, The University of Michigan Institute for Social Research and U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, National Institute on Drug Abuse, June 2004, http://www.monitoringthefuture.org/pubs/monographs/overview2003.pdf (accessed March 3, 2005)

FIGURE 6.4
Cumulative estimated number of lives saved by minimum drinking age laws, 1975-2002
SOURCE: "Figure 4. Cumulative Estimated Number of Lives Saved by Minimum Drinking Age Laws, 1975-2002," in Traffic Safety Facts 2002—Alcohol, U.S. Department of Transportation, National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, National Center for Statistics and Analysis, http://www.nrd.nhtsa.dot.gov/pdf/nrd-30/NCSA/TSF2002/2002alcfacts.pdf (accessed March 4, 2005)