Teen Smoking

4 Pages 960 Words

teen smoke

There is a major problem with under age smoking in our society today, just about every high school or middle school you drive by you see kids hiding out on the corners just so they can get a few drags between classes. You have to ask your self why do these kids smoke and where or how on earth do these youngsters get their tobacco products, in a news article I have researched the majority of kids 8th- 12th grade get there cigarettes from their friends or family members. “According to the news article 65% of kids in each individual grade said they receive them from their friends and family members, and just under half said they purchase them for them selves”. One major statistic is that out off all those kids who bought cigarettes for themselves under half had to show ID before purchasing tobacco. Youths can purchase cigarettes from stores at a success rate of 70-80% and 80-90% success rate when purchasing form vending machines that sell tobacco products? “Each year merchants illegally sell 947 million packs of cigarettes and 26 million containers of chewing tobacco to minors. These illegal sales are generating $221 million in tobacco industry profits” (ODHS News Release). The profits generated through underage tobacco use are substantial. The tobacco industry targets adolescents in advertisements, which is partially due to revenue created by underage use.
Over the past week I have conducted three different surveys on under age smoking, first was conducted right here on the Portland State University campus. I asked 117 students under the age of 25 on campus if they have ever purchased cigarettes for minors and surprisingly only 46% of the people I interviewed said they have before, but 85% said they have been asked on more than one occasion. The second survey I conducted was people over the age 35; I did this survey in a grocery store on Tuesday the 30th of November. I asked 25 people the same question and 85% of t...