May 24, 2006
Why Journalism School Sucks
“Sleeper effect” of cigarettes can last for years
LONDON (Reuters) – Trying just one cigarette may not be so harmless for non-smokers after all.
Scientists have discovered that a single cigarette has a “sleeper effect” that can increase a person’s vulnerability for three years or more to becoming a regular smoker.
Increase a person’s vulnerability? That statement has a causative implication. What are they saying, that if you smoke a cigarette, it might make you a habitual smoker years down the road. As if cigarettes have an addictive power that lasts three years.
But then it gets even worse:
Fidler and her team analyzed the impact of smoking a single cigarette on more than 2,000 children aged between 11 and 16 over five years.
Of the 260 children who by age 11 had tried one cigarette, 18 percent were regular smokers by the time they reached 14. But only seven percent of 11-year-olds who had never smoked had taken up the habit three years later.
“The results also indicate that prior experimentation is a strong predictor of taking up smoking later,” said Fidler, who reported the findings in the journal Tobacco Control on Thursday.
As if it’s the cigarette’s fault. How about this: the kind of kids who hang out with smokers and try cigarettes at age 11 are likely not supervised at home, hanging out with a crowd who are pressuring them to do it, and that’s why they’re more likely to smoke later?
This isn’t a sleeper effect. It’s a selection bias. Hell, it’s common sense!
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Brad, I wonder if some of these kids, in this age group, had parents that smoke and they are around cirgrettes more often? Parents do set examples and many times kids will follow.
TF and I don’t smoke, but our son did start smoking in his mid teens and he is totally addicted. He would go over to his friends house and smoke over there. We didn’t even know he was smoking till later, by that time he was addicted.
Good call, Brian …. I smoke and, believe it or not, it was not the cigarette that lept out of the pack, into my mouth, and magically lit itself.
(Now, my rationalization: I barely smoke 1/2 pack a day, and did not start until well after high school.)
Peer pressure, along with your accurate observation of kids hanging out with other kids who smoke (or do whatever else) are likely to try what the rest of the group is doing.
BRAD…not Brian…I just left Brian’s blog…sorry my friend..mea culpa. Geez, I am so sorry, BRAD.
Lucy: Brad, I wonder if some of these kids, in this age group, had parents that smoke and they are around cirgrettes more often?
Yeah, I wonder the same thing. That might have been a good detail to include in the report about this study, don’t you think?
David,
No worries… I get called Brian all the time… Not as often as people butcher my last name, though!