How many of us remember the anti smoking ads or commercials on television back in the 1970's? I remember those ads. I remember talking about smoking with my parents because of these public service announcements. It seems like they were on, along with the anti-littering campaigns.
I think most kids are a lot like I was, inquisitive and hungry to learn stuff. Now, I wasn't all fired up about history or math, but I was very interested in things of the world. I used to ask my parents all sorts of questions about news headlines or social topics that I read or heard about. I simply couldn't get enough information. The kids of today are no different. They want to know what's going on. After all, they grew up in the information age. We are constantly pushing the limits of communication. Twitter, Social Networking, Mashable and Digg. They've all revolutionized how we view life.What if we could use these information mediums to teach our kids today? Again, I'm not talking about social studies, but more like raising awareness within these kids. Help them to understand not only what's right and wrong, but why it's right or why it's wrong. A study in the Preventing Chronic Disease journal, looked at the influence of school policies on smoking prevalence among middle and junior high students.
The study looked at 10 Canadian school provinces during the 2004-05 school year. School tobacco policies were reviewed and students in grades 5-9 were given the Youth Smoking Survey. What the researchers found, was that schools whose policies explicitly stated purpose and goals regarding smoking, had a lower prevalence of smoking both at the school and among individuals in general. Policies which simply stated "no smoking allowed on campus" had a lower school smoking rate, but did not have lower individual smoking rates.
So how do I interpret these findings? Well, I think it goes back to my earlier point. If you don't educate or tell the kids why something is the way it is, they're not going to be as willing to follow along. However, if you give them expectations, explain why the rules exist, talk about how we're trying to protect their health, I believe you'll find them a lot more open to listening and remaining abstinent.
We've lost our way with smoking education in this country. We should borrow a page from our past and begin educating the kids; not just the teenagers, but the younger ones too. I've always been told that providing your child with the reason behind the rule, will help them follow the rule. I believe this study solidifies that point.
