Tobacco Road

Tobacco Road

One of my chores when teaching elementary school was to go through the “Homework Box” to check assignments. Some papers were smeared with jelly or crumpled and torn. Some really did look as if the dog had eaten them. But the most disturbing were those papers which reeked of cigarette smoke. 

Now my little sweeties were not lighting up at home. The smoke I smelled was second-hand. The papers, which had only been in the home for perhaps twelve hours, smelled as if they had been marinated in ashes. If the papers absorbed so much smoke, imagine what the lungs of the little ones did.

We know the dangers of smoking. Smoking causes cancer and emphysema Smoking causes premature aging. Smoking is dangerous for adults, teens, children, and fetuses. Smoking is generally bad news. But current studies show that there are even more dangers than previously detected. Smoking is bad for your brain.

Dr. Frances E. Jensen, in The Teenage Brain, writes about the effects tobacco has on the developing brain. Studies show that “cigarette smoking can cause a variety of cognitive and behavioral problems, including attention deficit disorder and memory loss, and it has been associated with lower IQ in teenagers.” Young brains are quicker to absorb and slower to release the poisons in cigarettes which include arsenic, cadmium, ammonia, and carbon monoxide — all deadly poisons. 

Adolescent smokers consistently score lower on IQ tests than nonsmokers. Early exposure increases the risk. Children, whose little brains are developing most rapidly, may be exposed in utero. Those with the most exposure may lag behind in math, reading, and other skills. 

Teens get addicted fast. They have a harder time “kicking the habit.” As Dr. Jensen notes, “Those who begin smoking in adolescence are also three times as likely to begin using alcohol” with a higher risk for other, more dangerous addictions. Addiction can begin at first exposure. Many start smoking by age twelve. Living with smokers puts children and their brains at risk for addiction. 

Teens are risk-takers. The reasoning/decision-making areas of their brain are still developing. Taking a drag from a friend’s cigarette or sneaking a pack out of Mom’s purse may seem daring and fun. There are many bad choices available to children today. What can parents do? 

Parents must limit the risks teens take. It is your job to ensure your children’s safety. If you smoke, quit. Limit your children’s exposure to second-hand smoke. Be good models for your children. Offer alternatives to risk-taking. Expose your children to good choices. Support their interests. Pay for the drum lessons or the soccer shoes. Take them camping or to concerts. Plan healthy family activities. Know what they are doing and why.

Help them learn to judge the choices they make. Taking a hit off a friend’s cigarette may make you seem cool now, but a lifetime of hacking is disgusting. Check out the stats on tobacco-chewing sports heroes — not their earned run averages, but their cancer rates. Read The Teenage Brain or other publications and know what you are talking about. And talk, and talk, and talk. Open communication with your teen is vital. Speak with authority and kindness. Respect your teen’s opinions. Ignore the rolling eyes. Focus on the listening brain.

The smoky papers I held in my hand were a warning of future troubles. Keep your children off “Tobacco Road.” Keep them, and their brains, on the road to good health.