Reasons why a young person may start to smoke cigarettes

There are many reasons why young people choose to take up smoking cigarettes. These include:

Curiosity

A young person may want to see what all the fuss is about and so try smoking to find out the taste and the feeling of smoking cigarettes.

Family

A young person may come from a family who smoke cigarettes and so the young person may see this as acceptable and copy their parents/family members.

Media influence

A young person may see celebrities smoking and they want to follow what their favourite celebrity does.

Peer pressure

A young person may want to fit in with their friendship/peer group, particularly if some or all of their friends smoke. They may fear being teased or being left out if they do not smoke.

Rebellion

A young person may want to try and break away from what their parents expect of them. They may choose to smoke cigarette, trying to be more independent and making choices for themselves; despite what their parents think.

To appear more mature

A young person may think they look more mature and older than they are if they smoke cigarettes and think this impresses others in their company/friendship group.

To control weight

A young person may believe that smoking can suppress their appetite, so they may smoke in-between meals rather than take a healthy snack.

To deal with stress

A young person may believe that when they smoke, it helps to calm them down and be able to deal with stress in their lives, such as family or school problems.

To look cool

A young person may think they look cool when they smoke and think that this impresses other people in their company/friendship group.

Check out the CCEA GCSE Learning for Life and Work Second Edition Textbook to find out more or check out: My Revision Notes: CCEA GCSE Learning for Life and Work: Second Edition

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