DEAR CHRISTINE: What can I do to help smokers?

Dear Christine,
WHILE YOU may not be a health expert, I still think you may be able, through some form of research, to deal with what I am about to say.
After all the publicity about the relationship between smoking and ill-health, it seems absurd to me that so many young people – even teenagers – have become chain smokers.
In many instances these are intelligent, talented individuals. I can only hope that they will kick the habit just as quickly as they start.
Most of them seem to like you to talk to them but cannot be influenced into giving up this habit. What can concerned persons like me do?
– B.A.
 
Dear B.A.,
It is true that I am not an expert on smoking but statistics generally have shown that many teenagers start smoking when they are around the ages of 14 to 17. In many cases, parents are unaware of what is happening. These teenagers believe that smoking is sexy and it is a way of proving that they are grown-ups.
What these young people do not know is that somewhere down the road they would have opened up their bodies to a range of sicknesses, including cancer of the lungs and heart diseases.
Most teenagers feel they have a built-in immunity to death. They also smoke because of peer pressure.
Assertiveness training can enable young people to counter peer pressure. In fact, any kind of training that will get the child in touch with himself and build his or her self-esteem is highly recommended.
– CHRISTINE