According to research, each day there are around 3,800 youths below 18 years old who smoke their first cigarette in the US and worldwide around 80,000 to 100,000 kids start smoking every day. Currently one in every four high school seniors and one in three young adults that are under age 26 smoke. If smoking continues at the current pace then smoking related diseases will kill one in every six people in the world, which already has a 4 million death toll to its collar.
Statistically cigarettes cause one in five American deaths and according to WHO (world health organization), approximately one quarter of children living in the western pacific region would die from smoking. The above numbers are staggering and the current medium that is the internet and smartphone apps are only taking this problem to greater leaps and bounds.
Marketers after tweens and teens
Tobacco companies are one of the top 10 advertisers per a survey and only 10% is spent on print and outdoor advertisement, the rest mainly include free t-shirts for young people and gifts like lighters and key chains. They try to link smoking with youth, freedom, fun, attractiveness, success, adventure, self fulfillment, etc.
Peer pressure, young age and dependence on nicotine become an addiction for most youths who are unable to give up smoking. According to a survey, US companies spend around 15 million a day on marketing that makes $5.7 billion a year; one can imagine that they are really after our kids so that they can find their customers. As every eight seconds, someone dies from tobacco use these companies are always in need for more new customers and now they are using the internet and smartphone apps to provide them access to our young kids.
‘Puff Puff Pass’ and other smartphone apps
To our utter dismay there are millions of Android and iPhone apps in the market that violate bans on tobacco advertising, they are using cartoon, celebrities, and games to glamorizing smoking. The app Puff Puff Pass allows users to virtually pass on the cigar or cigarette and depicts virtual smoking session among friends. There are apps that allow one to blow air into the smartphone microphone and the cigarettes lights up. They can have many wallpapers, virtual ashtrays and apps telling them that the puff would be better off with a beer in hand! Their pro tobacco messages are worse than print and other media said a consumer psychologist. It is found that such exposure will make kids belief that there is nothing wrong with smoking and they would undermine the health issues.
Health and smoking are two unlike things
Cancers of all kinds can be caused by smoking and most kids don’t know how bad it can get. There are around 4,000 toxic or carcinogenic chemicals in a single puff and awareness is key. Most young teens don’t know about the lungs, pancreas, mouth, kidney, cervical cancers and DNA changes caused by smoking. As the new media is taking its big grip on kids more than 100 such Android and iPhone smartphone apps are being used by 11 million users. Parents have to ensure this doesn’t happen on their purchased Android, iPhone, or BlackBerry smartphones and they are in control of every bad exposure to their teens and tweens.
Smoking cost the US $150 billion a year
It is best to never to smoke then one fighting to stop smoking. Quitting on the other hand is not impossible and parents should guide kids through the healthy path. By educating them about smoking and keeping watch on their internet use and their smartphone apps usage parents can ensure a smoke free lifestyle for their kids. It is highly recommended today to install exclusive mobile monitoring software like PhoneSheriff that allows watching of many smartphone activities like calls, websites, emails, apps, texts, chats/contacts, photos/videos and more. Get GPS tracking for kids smartphone and also block unwanted content from reaching your loved ones. Let them live happily and healthier without the killing smoke from a cigarette.