Category: Smoking

Patients addicted to tobacco are one of the major concerns of up-to-date medicine as constant nicotine intake leads to various disorders and worsens the health state and life quality of the users. Current medicine also tries to target pathologies on the initial stage of their development, more preferably – even before they start. Primary prevention is a desired future of all medical workers, and nurses play a central role in its implementation. Educating patients, spreading the data about the consequences of unwanted habits, supporting, and helping resolve abstinence symptoms are essential nurse practices for the general population’s health.

Nurses use evidence-based sources to implement prevention plans in society to create a safe environment for its inhabitants, improve and maintain the health of individuals, families, and other community groups. This assignment will focus on the assessment of the developed previously health promotion plan regarding smoking or tobacco usage. The paper will also identify the best communication, learning, and teaching interventions with the help of researched literature.

Patient-Centered Health Interventions

Reducing smoking and tobacco usage must be a process consisting of several steps. The primary promotion plan focuses on young adults below 25 years old, and to implement some changes, health care workers should target schools and colleges spreading the data about nicotine effects on the system and organs of the human body. The first step of the promotion plan is developing education sessions for school and college students regarding smoking.

Such health lessons should include the explanation of nicotine effects on the respiratory system, oral and ear pathologies, worsening of asthma attacks, impact on pregnant women and their fetuses (Healthy People 2030, 2020). Teaching lessons must be in-class format, for all students in the class, and interpersonal meetings with families and health care providers about risks of smoking and approaches to prevent smoking addiction (Duncan et al., 2018).

An in-depth explanation of the constant tobacco intake consequences will broadcast knowledge of young adults, help them understand better the processes happening in human bodies, and the negative long-term effects. This step of prevention plan has to be an ongoing practice to educate the young population and has to be implemented in 3 months. The education lessons should take 5% of the school curriculum to create closer and trustworthy relationships with healthcare workers.

Another essential step in the prevention plan is developing programs for cessation treatment at the hospitals and maintaining easy access to it for all smokers. According to the data provided by Ramsey et al. (2019), patient interest in quitting smoking does not correlate to the number of hospital-based treatments. The latter illuminates the issue of poor spread via media about available programs and treatment opportunities to the population. Allowing smoking patients to receive health aid in both governmental and private chains can enhance the care outcomes by providing constant observation, help on the withdrawal stage, support, help, and motivation by medical workers. Within one year of concentrated work, it should be possible to implement programs in the hospitals.

The other essential aspect of the promotion plan is the implementation of socio-economic changes in the community. In the United States, there is no current rules prohibiting smoking in public areas and working locations. However, some positive changes have been made in 2019, after amending the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act by increasing the threshold age for purchasing tobacco items from 18 to 21 years (FDA Food & Drug Administration, 2021).

Increasing prices on tobacco-containing products, developing smoke-free policies, controlling access to tobacco products, shortening the advertisements popularizing smoking will create better social protection and prevent young adults from being attracted to nicotine-containing items (Healthy People 2030, 2020). Implementing control of the information spread showed promising outcomes on young adults regarding smoking behavior and motivation to quit (Villanti et al., 2020). Government participation is vital for community health problem-solving, and only with its help, it is possible to reach sustainable outcomes. The periods of this step implementation depend on authorities and organizations regulating laws and should take approximately 6 months.

Practical Effects and Health Policy Implications

The proposed solutions will lead to promising practical effects such as better academic performance of young adults, preventing development of smoking-associated pathologies, and protecting vulnerable groups of population (pregnant women, patients with asthma). Health policy implications for the coordination and continuum of care focus on the legislation changes and simplifying the treatment programs for smokers at the hospitals. Described abode changes are essential for implementation as they will solve a substantial part of the current issue and enhance the health of the population.

Addressing Health Care Issues

Smoking-related health problems involve chronic obstructive lung disease, lung cancer development, and exacerbation of asthma symptoms. Chronic obstructive lung disease (COPD) is a predictable disorder following every smoker manifesting with coughing, wheezing, excessing sputum, and having breath shortage. Lung cancer develops after several years of smoking among people with a predisposition, and the most complicated issue about lung cancer treatment is its poor prognosis. Asthma attacks worsen after breathing in smoke or on the background of a smoking habit. Patients having atopy in family history are predisposed to developing asthma after smoking initiation. Thus, fighting the provocative and triggering factor such as smoking, it is possible to reduce the severity and spread of these pathologies.

Regarding COPD, all three steps of the prevention plan are relevant to issue solving: spreading the consequences of smoking including COPD among the young population at schools and colleges, highlighting the risks and life quality impacts the disorder brings in people’s lives, focusing mostly on quitting smoking programs instead of treating COPD symptoms severity that tends to come back. Cutting the advertisements, increasing process on cigarettes and tobacco-containing products so people of low socioeconomic status struggle to afford to smoke. Talking about lung cancer, it is essential to put extra stress in education on difficulties with its treatment and poor prognosis of the patients. Clarifying students of cancer development and fast metastasizing can clear the picture of smoking effects on the human body.

From the perspective of health care facilities, it is significant to implement yearly testing (X-Ray or CT-scan) for smokers as a part of the prevention plan. Identifying lung cancer in early stages can enhance prognosis and life duration.

Patients predisposal for atopy or having asthma should be involved in teaching practices as refraining from such unwanted habits is vital for them. Active and passive smokers can have more frequent attacks and as a result worse health conditions. Nurse communication with atopic patients should contain the explanation of oxygenation lack in their situation and its deterioration by smoking. Patients with severe asthma must learn to monitor the existence of smoking in their life, both active and passive as the latter can substantially worsen their quality of life. Community resources needed for successful health interventions are communication resources that are relevant to all three health issues.

Via education and interaction, it is possible to build a strong and trustful relationship with the young population and impact their perception of smoking. Family support and school services in this case can help health care providers to spread the ideas of unhealthiness and risk factors. Screening methods implemented by authorities are relevant to effective lung cancer prevention identifying patients under the risk. Advertising a healthy lifestyle can promote the image of a fit body in society and orient it away from unwanted habits. Communicating and teaching patients with asthma to avoid smoking as it may be the trigger of the attack is essential for these patients’ health. For these people, it is also central to be protected from smoking in public areas which can be done by regulating law by authorities.

Ethical Issues

The major ethical principles the current promotion plan targets are making access to health aid better and focusing on the long-term results regarding community health state. Additionally, the plan promotes rules and gives advice that will not harm the patient (principle of beneficence), respects the right of the patient to make decisions about his health (principle of autonomy). It is essential to explain and educate the patient using appropriate behavior models in the framework of the issue. However, every person has a right to make a decision, to judge himself and the condition of his health. A health care worker cannot judge the patient or push him to make choices, every step of education aims to explain and promote the advantages of a healthy lifestyle.

Priorities

Thus, this health promotion plan focuses on reducing smoking among young adults under 25 years. The priorities for a care coordinator while discussing with the patient the outcomes are gradual refusing from smoking, monitoring abstinent symptoms, supporting motivation on the way of quitting. Creating non-smoking surroundings if one of the family members smokes is also significant for the patient to avoid cravings behavior. Health policy provisions should include law, advertisement, and prices regulation regarding tobacco products. Such changes can create a continuum of care and a multifunctional approach to the issue.

References

Duncan, L. R., Pearson, E. S., & Maddison, R. (2018). Smoking prevention in children and adolescents: A systematic review of individualized interventions. Patient education and counseling, 101(3), 375-388. Web.

FDA Food & Drug Administration. (2021). Tobacco 21. Web.

Healthy People 2030. (2020). Tobacco Use. Web.

Ramsey, A. T., Prentice, D., Ballard, E., Chen, L.-S., & Bierut, L. J. (2019). Leverage points to improve smoking cessation treatment in a large tertiary care hospital: A systems-based mixed methods study. BMJ Open, 9(7), e030066. Web.

Villanti, A. C., West, J. C., Klemperer, E. M., Graham, A. L., Mays, D., Mermelstein, R. J., & Higgins, S. T. (2020). Smoking-Cessation interventions for US young adults: Updated systematic review. American Journal of Preventive Medicine, 59(1), 123-136. Web.

Inequality and discrimination are the most unfair things in the world as they make people suffer because of their identities. Teenagers and high school students are especially vulnerable to such injustice because they are more sensitive to the world around them, and bullying that is common in schools only exacerbates the situation. For this reason, LGBTQ + students who face the issues recognizing their personality and sexuality, and at the same time, experience stress due to inequality, are more prone to substance abuse. Therefore, in this paper, we will consider the problem of inequality for LGBTQ + representatives in high school and the problem of smoking, drinking, and violence that it causes.

Inequality and discrimination against LGBTQ + people exist in high school, and it is often accompanied by bullying from other children and also administrative measures of adults. For example, there are laws in eight U.S. states that prohibit LGBTQ + people from being teachers (Thoreson, 2016). At the same time, LGBTQ + children more often receive insults, restrictions on their activities, and even physical threats, which increases the level of stress. This injustice forces these students to turn to alcohol abuse, smoking, and violence to protect themselves or forget about their concerns (Brown, 2017). In the short term, this behavior leads to study problems, exam failures, and even going to jail or death. In the future, it threatens severe physical and mental health problems, as well as the inability to normalize life. This trend is becoming less noticeable with a gradual increase in the tolerance of society, but it still appears at a level noticeable for concern.

Discrimination against LGBTQ + people has existed since ancient times; however, levels of its manifestation and inequality were various depending on the historical era and the state. In the United States, discrimination flourished in the 1960s and 1980s, when homosexuality was considered a psychological deviation, and later, society considered the LGBTQ + community as the cause of AIDS (Hegarty, 2017). Today, the equal rights movement has made significant progress as people are less afraid of expressing their sexuality, sexual preferences, or non-binary gender, and many states allow same-sex marriage and the adoption of children. However, discrimination against LGBTQ + is still widespread at both the routine and legal levels.

These features are also transmitted to high schools and students who already determined their sexual preferences and gender, but at the same time, are vulnerable to public opinion. The second aspect manifests itself in adolescents in different ways, since some students may succumb to the homophobic ideas of their parents or friends by adopting stereotypes and hatred about LGBTQ + people. Others are representatives of the minority who suffer from a wrong attitude towards them. However, in the situation with the first group of students, they can also lose their bias and stereotypes if the policy of the school is friendly and equal for all people.

Nevertheless, many high school students annually report various manifestations of discrimination against them, which can be displayed in insults, rejections, as well as physical violence from other students. For example, in some schools, LGBTQ+ children are not allowed in shared toilets or locker rooms of their gender (Thoreson, 2016). Besides, often offensive statements affecting sexuality are used as a joke to adolescents who do not know or do not belong to a minority, which adds aggression and a negative context to the non-straight sexualities (Parent et al., 2019). This behavior is a common manifestation of bullying, which is another serious problem at schools, since many children with any differences often become victims of more popular or stronger students. At the same time, LGBT + students are the most frequent target of discrimination and inequality from their peers, which puts extreme pressure and stress on them.

Moreover, inequality is most pronounced when the school or state administration supports laws that restrict any rights and freedoms of LGBTQ + students. Such restrictions can be a ban on participation in any competitions or events; for example, a transgender person cannot be a contestant in “Miss School” or even a member of a basketball team. Besides, many schools use laws that prevent teachers and students from discussing homosexuality in sex education classes and even literature, which creates a lack of information (Thoreson, 2016). Many states also still do not have laws that prohibit discrimination based on gender or sexual orientation, which also gives freedom to create unequal conditions. In addition, many teachers also insult LGBTQ + students or their parents or do not respond to discriminatory actions by students (Parent et al., 2019). One student noted that when her classmates insulted her gay father, the teacher also laughed, which hurt her feelings significantly (Thoreson, 2016). Consequently, there are many ways of expressing inequalities to LGBTQ + people at school that can combine or exist separately, causing stress and discomfort to the students.

Multiple studies have shown that this inequality causes stress in young people and increases the chances of alcohol abuse, smoking, and violence. Parent et al. (2019) notes that direct stresses such as harassment and bullying at school are major factors that increase the risk of tobacco, alcohol, and drug use. However, these factors can also be supplemented by pressure from the rejection of family or school policies. Huebner (2015) also notes that such discrimination encourages LGBTQ + students to become members of divine groups and resort to violence more often. Such violence can also be a consequence of the constant exposure to substances, or as a defensive reaction to harassment. In addition, alcohol and drug abuse also lead to higher chances of unprotected and random sexual intercourses because adolescents are exposed to substances, which also threatens their health and safety (Parent et al., 2019). Consequently, the inequality and discrimination against LGBTQ + students in high school harm their mental, emotional, and physical health due to the high level of stress and abuse of various substances that it causes.

At the same time, researches also demonstrate that a friendly school climate with support and equal treatment of all students reduces the risk of deviant behavior. For example, Coulter et al. (2016) compared the LGBT climate in schools and their impact on heavy episodic drinking days of homosexual and heterosexual students. Scientists concluded that an affirmative school climate reduces the number of drinking days for homosexual students (Coulter et al., 2016). There are also scholarly works that study in more detail the parameters of the school climate and its impact on LGBTQ + students. Taylor (2018) explored how the strategies of policing, resistance, and queering influence student victimization, and concluded that the third strategy promotes an inclusive community, reduces inequality and bullying against LGBTQ + children. In the study, an example of such an approach is the organization of a drag-event, or a fashion show, in which students participate, and teachers help with the organization (Taylor, 2018). Therefore, one may note by linking these two studies that school administration policies aimed at creating a positive climate in schools reduce the risks of substance abuse and violence among LGBTQ+ students.

More specific measures should also be taken to reduce inequalities in schools and combat the health problems that they cause. First, states must eliminate discriminatory laws, such as “no promo homo,” and enact laws that restrict discrimination (Thoreson, 2016). School administrations need to revise their policies and make equal conditions for participation in competitions, alliances, or activities for all students, as well as to conduct classes or events promoting equality and LGBTQ + friendliness. In addition, teachers and school psychologists need to be more attentive to student complaints of harassment and react to cases of abuse or violence. Psychologists should also respond to symptoms and help LGBTQ + students who are faced with substance abuse problems. This approach helps establish a friendly school climate and gradually eliminates inequalities among administrators, teachers, and students.

In conclusion, discrimination against LGBTQ + students in high school leads to such health issues of young people as alcohol, tobacco, drug abuse, and violence. Such inequality can be expressed as administrative prohibitions on the participation of LGBTQ + students in social events and discussion of the topic of homosexuality, as well as in aggression, intimidation, and physical threats of other students. Constant pressure and stress, as well as lack of support, increase the risks of substance abuse. For this reason, the primary goal of the state and school administration is to review policies and laws to create a friendlier school climate and reduce inequality. These steps contribute to improving the mental and physical health of adolescents among LGBTQ + and straight communities.

References

1. Brown, C. S. (2017). Discrimination in childhood and adolescence: A developmental intergroup approach. Psychology Press.
2. Coulter, R. W., Birkett, M., Corliss, H. L., Hatzenbuehler, M. L., Mustanski, B., & Stall, R. D. (2016). Associations between LGBTQ-affirmative school climate and adolescent drinking behaviors. Drug and Alcohol Dependence, 161, 340–347.
3. Hegarty, P. (2017). A recent history of lesbian and gay psychology: From homophobia to LQBT. Routledge.
4. Huebner, D. M., Thoma, B. C., & Neilands, T. B. (2015). School victimization and substance use among lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender adolescents. Prevention Science, 16(5), 734–743.
5. Parent, M. C., Arriaga, A. S., Gobble, T., & Wille, L. (2019). Stress and substance use among sexual and gender minority individuals across the lifespan. Neurobiology of Stress, 10(100146). 1-9.
6. Taylor, N. N. (2018). “Misfits” and the celebration of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) youth at a high school in the United States. Journal of Research Initiatives, 4(1), 1-22.
7. Thoreson, R. (2016, December 3). “Like walking through a hailstorm.” Discrimination against LGBT youth in US schools. Human Right Watch.

Today, people believe they can replace their harmful smoking habits with safer vaping practices. However, the hazards of smoking have never disappeared, and it is important to inform society and present enough arguments on this topic. Prabhat Jha is the author of the article “The Hazards of Smoking and the Benefits of Cessation,” published in a not-for-profit scientific journal, eLife, in 2020.

This analysis is based on statistics about deaths among the citizens of high-income countries to explain the hazards of smoking and discuss the benefits of cessation (Jha). The main sources of evidence chosen by the author include articles from the PubMed database and reports of such organizations as the World Health Organization and the US Institute of Medicine. Seven major conclusions are made, addressing medical, biological, administrative, emotional, economic, and social aspects of the current situation.

Despite being properly aware of the damage of smoking and vaping, in particular, current smoking prevalence continues to grow in the United States, Canada, and the United Kingdom. Jha explains people’s choices due to the addictive nature of cigarettes and focuses on the historical smoking trends during the last several decades. Although the habits of adult smokers were formulated many years ago, young smokers are exposed to such innovations as e-cigarettes. People believe in a low level of harmful substances in vaping devices. However, Jha underlines that e-smoking is never completely risk-free, and the presence of nicotine cannot be ignored, affecting human health and cardiac effects.

Cessation is one of the most effective steps to predict smoking-related complications. The chosen article and Jha’s approach contribute to a better understanding of this decision to be made as soon as possible.

Work Cited

Jha, Prabhat. “The Hazards of Smoking and the Benefits of Cessation: A Critical Summation of the Epidemiological Evidence in High-Income Countries.” Elife, vol. 9, 2020. PubMed Central.

Introduction

Cigarette smoking is a harmful activity that results in versatile negative consequences for people’s health. Smoking leads to lung problems, cardiovascular issues, and various chronic diseases, which significantly worsens the population’s health and leads to a higher financial burden for the healthcare system. With that, tobacco is still legally accessible to every person who is above 18 years old. This fact denotes that many people engage in this misbehavior, and all genders smoke cigarettes, subjecting their health to negative impacts. The problem is so widespread that more than 480,000 individuals die because of smoking in the United States every year (New York Department of Health, 2022).

Background

The given problem adversely affects the citizens of New York City. According to statistical evidence, over 614,000 individuals are considered current smokers (New York Department of Health, 2022). As for the selected community in Midtown, smoking prevalence is 11%, which equals the city’s average (New York Department of Health, 2018). Various social, political, and ecological factors contribute to the problem because smoking rates are higher among people with unemployment, low education status, and lower income. The problem is addressed, and the visual by the New York Department of Health (2022) denotes that smoking rates have kept declining for a few consecutive years. Finally, the selected topic is aligned with Health People 2030 because one of its objectives is to reduce tobacco use among adults (US Department of Health and Human Services, n.d.).

Research Question & Hypothesis

The discussed facts demonstrate that it is reasonable to make an additional effort to reduce smoking rates. The current project attempts to answer the following research question: What is the relationship between gender and assessing the negative impact of this activity on health? Thus, the following hypothesis is tested: Women are more likely than men to believe that smoking is more harmful to health.

Many scholarly articles are devoted to the selected topic, and they provide a better insight into the problem. For example, the visuals on the slide are extracted from the study by Drope et al. (2018), who state that smoking prevalence is higher among men compared to women. The graphs cover more than 25 years and include information about different ethnic groups. Even though the difference is not dramatic, there is no doubt that men are more frequent smokers. This finding is not unique since O’Keeffe et al. (2018) highlight that smoking-related mortality is higher among males. This conclusion is logical because men are more likely to engage in this misbehavior and suffer from more adverse impacts. That is why it is reasonable to study whether there are significant differences in how genders assess the danger of smoking.

Methods

The current project relies on quantitative methodology, and the respondents were asked to complete a Google Form survey. The survey was designed to analyze the connection between a person’s gender and their assessment of how harmful smoking is. This statement denotes that gender is an independent variable, while a belief about smoking harm is a dependent one. In total, 73 females and 44 males participated in the project and answered the proposed questions. This sample size allows for making reasonable suggestions about the entire population, but the absence of randomization denotes that the findings cannot be completely generalized.

Calculating the Results

The participants were asked to rate the impact of various behaviors on their health, and each possible response was assigned some points. The following system was used: No Effect (1 point), A Small Effect (2 points), Neutral Effect (3 points), An Effect (4 points), and A Strong Effect (5 points). Thus, men and women were expected to demonstrate their beliefs about how harmful smoking was to people’s health. When all the respondents answered the questions, it became possible to apply a quantitative analysis tool to understand the meaning of the identified results. In fact, the calculated results and their interpretation is discussed in the following slide.

Results

At first sight, attention is drawn to the fact that more men (65.9%) than women (50.7%) stipulated that smoking had a strong effect on health. However, individual responses cannot reveal the entire picture, and it is reasonable to rely on descriptive statistics. Thus, the mean value was 4.25 for males and 4.39 for females. This finding demonstrates that women consider smoking more impactful on their health compared to men, even though not a big difference exists. One can suggest that this belief makes females refrain from smoking.

Conclusion & Recommendations

Descriptive analysis has demonstrated that women tend to believe that smoking is more impactful on people’s health. The focus on the mean values supports this conclusion. One can suggest that men are more likely to smoke because they underestimate the negative impact of this activity on their health. Thus, it is necessary to make males better understand the harmful effects of smoking, which can reduce smoking prevalence within this gender group. It is possible to expand this project by finding relations between the identified information and specific health outcomes. For instance, one can focus on which gender is more subject to smoking-related lung cancer.

References

Drope, J., Liber, A. C., Cahn, Z., Stoklosa, M., Kennedy, R., Douglas, C. E., Henson, R., & Drope, J. (2018). Who’s still smoking? Disparities in adult cigarette smoking prevalence in the United States. CA: A Cancer Journal for Clinicians, 68(2), 106-115. Web.

New York Department of Health. (2018). Midtown: Community health profiles 2018 [PDF document]. Web.

New York Department of Health. (2022). Cigarette smoking [PDF document]. Web.

O’Keeffe, L. M., Taylor, G., Huxley, R. R., Mitchell, P., Woodward, M., & Peters, S. A. (2018). Smoking as a risk factor for lung cancer in women and men: A systematic review and meta-analysis. BMJ Open, 8(10), 1-12. Web.

US Department of Health and Human Services. (n.d.). Healthy People 2030. Web.

Introduction

Nicotine addiction among teenagers has recently become one of the most pressing problems in the modern American society. Overall, the attempts made by anti-smoking campaigners hardly yield any results, because they mostly focus on harmfulness of tobacco smoking and the publics’ awareness of the problem, itself, but they do not eradicate the underlying causes of teenage smoking. It is possible to single out three factors that contribute to teenage addiction to nicotine. The considerable shift in social and political thought should be made in order to eliminate these factors. Furthermore, it is worth mentioning that it cannot be done it by compulsion. Perhaps it would more prudent to illustrate this statement.

The underlying causes of teenage smoking and possible solutions

Accessibility of tobacco products. Children can easily purchase cigarettes in vending machines, and in this case, no one can prevent them from doing it. Additionally, every shop places tobacco products in the forefront, which certainly attracts the attention of the would-be buyer (such technique can be applied not only to children or teenagers, but also to adults). Tobacco manufactures produce such commercials that make smoking look fashionable or even attractive.

Anti-smoking campaigners state that tobacco products should be made more expensive. Such method can be effective; however, it may arouse a wave of protest from manufactures, because the government cannot prohibit them to display their products. As regards price increase, it should be mentioned that such policy can have adverse effects on the economy of the country. Many amendments to the existing legislation should be made, in order to implement such policy. The measures that have already been taken can only reduce the effects of the advertising campaign, though they cannot eliminate the root cause, accessibility of tobacco products.

The impact of parents. It is estimated that approximately seventy three percent of teenagers, addicted to nicotine, have smoking parents. Psychologists believe, that we are inclined to emulate the behavior of our parents (at least subconsciously). The major problem is that very often parents do not realize that they incite their children to smoke. As the Department of Health states, various programs should be launched in order to increase parents awareness of this fact. It is believed that educators can make a considerable contribution, because they can influence not only the students but also their parents.

The influence of popular culture. As it has already been mentioned earlier, we tend to emulate the behavior of other people. Recent researches have proved that there is direct relation between nicotine addiction among teenagers and the tendencies in modern pop culture. Unwillingly some of Hollywood stars make smoking habits almost fashionable. For instance, when John Travolta smokes on television, smoking, itself inevitable becomes an inseparable part of the so-called “cool” behavior. The power that popular icons exercise over the unmolded minds of the young generation is immense. However, the government can hardly affect film industry, because such intervention verges on censorship and it can be viewed as the violation of the Fourth Amendment. It is considered that some of these films, featuring movie stars smoking should rated as R. However, such measures can make Hollywood production literally unavailable, to teenagers.

Conclusions

Now, that the major causes of cause of teenage smoking are identified, it is quite possible to conclude that the government is not able to eradicate all of them by force, the only possible solution is to increase public awareness of the problem, especially parents. Moreover, popular icons should understand that their behavior often drives children or teenagers to smoking. Nevertheless, it should be borne in mind that the existing legislation cannot change current situation.

Literature review of the scientific journal articles

The issue

Smoking is carcinogenic among other things and it is the number one actual cause of death around the world. The dangers that arise from smoking are largely identifiable and well known. According to research conducted by the World Health Organization, the number of people estimated to die as a result of smoking stands at 5.4 million a year around the world. Everyone knows and agrees that smoking is not healthy.

The use of tobacco through smoking is a trend among adolescents and teenagers with the number of young people who involve themselves in smoking is growing each day. About 800,000 to 100,000 young people start smoking each day around the world, especially in the Asian continent. Tobacco use is rapidly increasing among high school students, and as researches show, smoking is a major cause of deterioration of health.

Hence, smoking among teenagers is a problem that should be focused on and tried to fix. From one of the research studies conducted we’ve found that among the teenagers who started smoking during their adolescence, 50% of them go on smoking in the next 15 to 20 years later. It is estimated that one-third of these young smokers are expected to die from a smoking-related disease. The deaths of our youth are something that we shouldn’t ignore or be sidetracked away from.

Causes

The research found from most of the articles states that the major or one of the most important causes of smoking among adolescents is peer pressure, including marketing and advertising. There is a study that shows the results of predictors of smoking intention, analyzing that the greatest predictors of smoking intention were attitude and perceived behavioral control. In the case of peer pressure, an example could be where one member of the group smoking leads the other to do the same or even trying to smoke.

In one of the studies done on the prevalence of smoking and tobacco chewing found 61.69% points out that friends are the main inducing factor for addiction. In other articles mentioned a correlation between smoking, alcohol consumption, and drug abuse. Also, a study done on the prevalence of tobacco use among students aged 13- 14 years, shows how much influence smokers get from advertising (70%), and how much from indirect advertising (10%). the perception that comes into mind when non-smokers get to see adverts concerning smoking is depicted as a positive and this may result in a person trying to just get the feeling as seen on the media.

Smoking advertisements go as far as it is portrayed as a good habit especially in movies and films. These two subjects are of great influence among many young people and according to psychologists’ theory, it explains that the strength of a personal intention to start behaving in certain ways is basically because of the attitude the behavior and the influential activities about the said behavior. With advertising comes the promotion where some tobacco companies give away gifts when one purchases a tobacco product. This is a way of enticing buyers and it works most of the time because many adolescents are seen to positively respond to these kinds of promotions by buying the product in plenty. (Muslim Report 2010)

Prevention

Results of research done in Western Australia shows that using counseling with disciplinary actions on smoking students were more effective than plain disciplinary action. Proper education focusing on adolescents and teaching them about the dangers of smoking and its effects on health is one way to prevent smoking. “Another way to prevent teenage smoking is to decrease cigarette marketing to younger adults and increase the cost of cigarettes high, keep product placement and advertising away from schools and other areas with a high volume of youth traffic, make cigarette advertising – themes and visual aids and images- unappealing to youth, make product packaging unappealing to the younger generations, and lastly to design the product so it is not easy to inhale” (Hafez 2010).

Literature review of the newspaper articles

The issue

Smoking among teenagers became a big problem in the UAE, especially that Midwakh was perceived as more fashionable among teenagers of both genders. Most of the youngsters result in smoking due to depression, pressure from peers, and other influences that includes advertising and films. A survey conducted in the UAE shows that 45% of teenagers aged between 17 and 18 are smokers, a rate that should not be neglected.

Almost all of the girls who participated in the research knew that smoking causes lung and heart diseases. As mention in the article that a recent Ministry of Health report found that tobacco use among teenagers was 14.3% among males and 2.9% among young females. In Dubai 14.6% of the students in the schools consume tobacco products these findings are from the Dubai Health Authority, further information gave is that more than 70% of those engaged in tobacco products consumption smoke cigarettes while about 10% use shisha, the other 9% use pipe and 1% use cigars another 1% chew the tobacco.

Causes

From a survey done by medical students at UAE University, the majority of girls mentioned peer pressure as the main reason people start smoking. Another cause or variable that aids in teenage smoking Is the fact that some grocery stores in the country sell cigarettes to minors – under the age of 18 years, which is the legal age for buying cigarettes – even though it is illegal for those shops to sell them to anyone under 18 years of age. This behavior is hurting the peers of such students, who may also feel tempted to take up the bad habit of smoking. Also, less control in schools is helping students to smoke without their parent’s or teachers’ knowledge. (Saberi, 2010)

Prevention

The World Health Organization has outlined a treaty, the Framework Convention for Tobacco Control (FCTC) which is to be signed by all member countries to develop a global smoking prevention programs. From the WHO website, we found that the United Arab Emirates signed the (FCTC) treaty on the 24th of June, 2004. Also, researchers recommended developing rules for selling and advertising cigarettes as a dangerous and addictive drug.

Other studies suggested banning the sale of cigarettes to young people, less than 21 years of age. Furthermore, it recommended increasing educational activities for children and youth in schools and the media about the dangerous effects of smoking. For instance, the Dubai government did camping for women and children, explain about smoking. However, according to Dr. Hanif Hassan, the Minister of Health, the UAE was making efforts to enforce the anti-tobacco draft legislation and to achieve the country’s goal towards enhancing the country’s health.

So they are looking into coming up with measures, such as doubling the price of cigarettes and banned smoking on beaches. In one of the articles, they have talked about banning the smoking of shisha and midwakh in public. “Dr. Wedad AL Maidoor, the head of the National Tobacco Control Committee, adds that the law forbids tobacco usage in enclosed areas and public places and there should be no extra rooms for any smoking activities available, without specifying any type of tobacco” (Al Bakry 2010).

However, it is not as clear as what the government means public but in areas that include government offices, hospitals, and schools, no smoking activities around these places are allowed. This will detour the addicts from using the narcotic drug during the day. “The tobacco control team by the ministry of finance is increasing the price of cigarette packs to make the habit costlier, as studies have shown that whenever the price of cigarettes is exorbitant there is a decrease in smoking among young adults. Another deterrent to smoking is that half of the cigarette packets will be covered with graphic images to send home the message that smoking kills.

Presently, a packet only carries a warning that smoking is the highest cause of lung cancer and heart diseases” (Al Bakry 2010). Campaigns have been organized as a way to make the public aware of the effects that are related to smoking or consumption of tobacco products. One such campaign is the Tobacco-free Women Campaign held in Dubai in June 2010, which was a major success because more than 5,700 people actually participated in the campaign and later recorded that among all these people 75 were said to have quit smoking during the campaign period (Al Bakry 2010).

From an article in the National newspaper, the number of children engaging in smoking is increasing as children even as young as 13 years old are smoking illegal drugs like marijuana. It also points out that the girls constitute 20%of the smokers in Dubai according to a survey conducted by the government. Girls as young as six years are smoking most of them start smoking due to peer pressure from friends.

This concern was raised in the Dubai Women Association by the health minister, Dr Hanif Hassan, to make women aware of the effects of smoking on their health. Besides, the government together with the WHO has been involved in ensuring that rate of smokers in the country drop. There have been Anti-Tobacco campaigns supported by both the government and the WHO, a drafted law concerning the National Anti-Tobacco laws has been finalized and only awaits cabinet approval. Among other ways to reduce the number of consumers of cigarettes is the doubling price of tobacco products, putting of warning signs stating smoking is harming in all TV programs that have characters smoking (Zeitoun 2009).

References

Al Bakry, M. (2010). survey on teenage smoking held. gulfnews.com. Web.

Hafez, S. (2010). mmjnews, youth smoking ants to get high. Web.

Muslim Report, staff reporter (2010). UAE ministry plans to ban smoking shisha and midwakh in public. Web.

Saberi, A.(2010) Senior Reporter; Girls as young as six smoke in GCC. Web.

Zeitoun, M.(2009) call on tobacco sponsors. Web.

Introduction

This paper proposes a study that will be carried out using one-way analysis of variance (One-way ANOVA). One-way ANOVA is a statistical test that is applied in cases with three or more groups or levels of independent variables (Pallant, 2005). The proposal outlines the statistical applications of one-way ANOVA, the study participants, the variables, study methods, expected results and biases, and the practical significance of the expected results. The proposed study will endeavor to answer this research question:

Is there a difference in TB cases among the young, middle-aged, and old persons who smoke cigarettes?

The research question is appropriate for one-way ANOVA because it satisfies the conditions for the test. First, the research question has one categorical independent variable. The independent variable has three different groups, i.e. young, middle-aged, and old persons. The three groups of persons are continuous variables. For example, the study will have participants in three age groups. Young persons will be participants aged between 18 to 25 years middle-aged persons will be aged between 30 to 40 years, and old persons will be aged 60 years and above. The research question also fits to be analyzed by one-way ANOVA because it has one dependent variable (the TB cases). The study will attempt to assess whether there are statistically significant differences in TB cases in three groups of smokers. Statistical notation for the linear model is:

y_{i, j} = µ_j + ∑_{i, j} (Means model) or y_i,j = µ_i + T_j + ∑_{I, j} (effects model)

Where:

• i = 1,…, I refers to groups that are in the experiment
• j = 1,…, J refers to groups that are being manipulated
• I_j refers to the groups in an experiment that are being manipulated in the j^th group
• I =∑ Ij refers to the total groups in an experiment
• y_i,j = total number of changes observed in an experiment
• µ_j= the average of changed observed in an experiment for the j^th group (which was manipulated), and
• µ= total number of averages of responses obtained in an experiment.
• The null and alternative hypotheses are explained as follows:
• H₀ (Null Hypothesis): There is no difference in TB cases in the young, middle-aged, and old cigarette smokers.
• H1 (Alternative hypothesis): There is a difference in TB cases in the young, middle-aged, and old cigarette smokers.

The errors that will mostly occur in the study will occur in the variances calculated by the one-way ANOVA statistical test.

Methods

The study will recruit 150 participants, 50 participants for each group of smokers. For each group of smokers, half of the participants will be females while the other half will be males. The study participants will be assigned to the study groups depending on their ages. Young smokers will be participants aged between 18 to 25 years, middle-aged smokers will be aged between 30 to 40 years, and old smokers will be aged 60 years and above.

The age of the study participants will be the categorical independent variables in the study. They will be three groups of the young, middle-aged and old cigarette smokers. The continuous dependent variable will be TB cases among the study participants. The age groups will be measured using a nominal scale. Also, the dependent TB cases variables will be measured using nominal scale.

Results

The study will use one-way ANOVA to assess the differences in TB cases among the cigarette smokers. Tukey’s Post-Hoc Test will be used to give further information regarding the preliminary results obtained using the one-way ANOVA. One-way ANOVA will be appropriate because the research question contains groups of independent variables (age groups of smokers) and one dependent variable (TB cases).

The statistical tests will provide crucial information on the association of TB cases with cigarette smokers’ age groups. The tests will show or dispute statistical significance of the differences in the incidents of TB cases and ages of the smokers. If the statistical tests will show significant differences in the number of TB cases and the ages of the study participants (the young, middle-aged and old smokers), then the null hypothesis will not accepted. Thus, the alternative hypothesis will be adopted for the study.

Conclusion

The one-way ANOVA to be used in this study will assume that the age groups of the cigarette smokers will have normally distributed differences. This assumption might lead to faults in the study results. The one-way ANOVA will also assume that there will be no significant differences in the outliers among the different groups of cigarette smokers. Conclusions on the association of age and onset of TB can be made from the results of the proposed study. If TB cases will be found to increase with the increase in the ages of the study participants, then it will be concluded that age greatly determines the onset of TB among cigarette smokers. However, the results will not give hints on other causative agents of TB. The results will have practical applications in public health because public health professionals will understand the link between TB and age of smokers.

References

Jackson, S. L. (2012). Research methods and statistics: A critical thinking approach (4^th ed.). Belmont, CA: Wadsworth.

Pallant, J. (2005). SPSS Survival Manual. Sydney: Ligare.

Introduction

The article was sourced published on 2007.

Description of the article

It reports about the rising cigarette smoking among the young population in Germany which causes 380 deaths per day. The report also included a global view on the negative effects of tobacco as it noted 5 million deaths annually. The report emphasized that deaths related to Glimmstaengel have caused more than AIDS, alcohol, illegal drugs, traffic accidents, murders, and suicides combined. The influence of smoking among the young, however, was due to their own parents or through orientation to Popstars and Filmidolen. The rise of tobacco use has been consistent especially among young teens and even children as about 1000 are added daily among smokers. The report also assailed the Federal Government for siding the interest of the cigarette industry instead of the health of the citizens.

The news article also provided boxes detailing a summary on tobacco use, among children, effect on women, links on what parents or individuals can do, advertisement on books or videos about education on the dangers of smoking and how to prevent or avoid health complications it brings, among others.

The language used is quite strong as the report is presented as a warning to the reader. It includes factual incidence of deaths related to smoking not only in Germany but on a global scale. The use of superlative comparison on the high rate of deaths due to smoking as against death rate combining AIDS, alcohol, illegal drugs, traffic accidents, murders, and suicides also provided a note of urgency and danger.

By noting the cause and effect of the rising cigarette use among young teens and even children, the report drives home its message to give the issue a high priority. It also tries to get the attention and wants to influence the Federal Government to act immediately on the health issue as it criticizes how it sides with capitalists. However, the article also sufficiently provided that there is also a government action on the issue by placing higher taxes, consequently, higher cigarette prices that have reduced the use of smoking. The frightening effect, as well as the urgency of the issue, is also highlighted through the use of these exact words.

Genre is quite downplayed in the article as there was no emphasis on male or female smokers. However, its effective inclusion of details and comparison provides a high impact on the reader as it was able to point out how dangerous smoking is as well as how important the issue it brings. It seems to influence an immediate action and cause the reader not only to have his own opinion but act on the issue.

Reflections

Personally, I find the article of relevance to almost any reader like me, smoking or not smoking. It may not have highlighted the negative impact of secondary smoke to make even non-smokers beware, it was able to influence the reader to think twice about smoking as it emphasized its deadly effect. In a broader context, the article failed to include the highly negative effect of secondary smoke inhaled by non-smokers, which could have been gathered a better anti-smoking sentiment. Nevertheless, its suggestion for readers to re-think and re-consider the negative effects of cigarette use and of nicotine as highly addictive supplemented whatever lacking view on related smoking issues were missed.

Introduction

Smoking in public places has been banned in most parts of the world. Some people smoke publicly simply because this is their personal lifestyles and individual choice on which they should not be victimized. However the right to smoke as one pleases could greatly be countered by another person’s lifestyle of the right to breathing smokeless air. Recent researches have shown that those who do not smoke are at risk of being exposed to the same carcinogens which are cancer causing as those who are active smokers and they smoke in public settings.

Core Problems

The environmental tobacco smoke is known to contain more than 4000 chemicals and at least 40 carcinogens that are known. The research has further indicated that the carcinogens are in higher concentrations in the second hand smoke rather than in the mainstream smoke which makes it more harmful for people to smoke publicly. This is because there are very harmful effects that follow on the smokers themselves and to those who inhale the second hand smoke. One of the major effects for smoking in public places is that it causes a higher risk of cancer, emphysema heart diseases and other acute and chronic diseases. Cigarette smoking is known to increase the aggregation of blood platelets or the clotting of blood. It also damages the endolithium a layer of cells in the blood vessels. Due to public smoking, the second hand smoke has been a triggering factor for the heart attacks and there have been an increased number of heart attack hospitalizations and even deaths from the smoke effects. For the smokers and the non smokers who inhale the fumes they are at a greater risk of developing heart diseases especially if one has high blood pressure. Another effect of smoking in the public places is that there are increased risks of fire break outs in the areas that have any explosive hazards or even where there is handling of flammable materials. Similarly when smokers smoke publicly they increase the risk of contamination in places where pharmaceuticals and foods are manufactured and prepared for human consumption.

On the other hand smokers litter around without considering the environmental effects and this causes the environment to be hazardous. Public smoking also affects the air quality in public establishments where some respirable suspended particles are released thus enhancing air pollution and also increasing the toxin exposure to human beings. Public smoking on the other hand has made many businesses to suffer directly or indirectly due to the loss of customers especially in establishments like hotels which encourage smoking in their premises. Public smoking similarly affects people from vulnerable groups such as the children, the pregnant women and also the disabled who are unable to choose their environments.

There is a more serious concern that the banning of a smoking in public places may lead to an increased rate of smoking in the homes and this could be more hazardous especially when there is the presence of small children. Passive smoke contains very strong sensitizers and irritants and many children as well as adults the suffer a lot of irritation and other acute effects when they are exposed to secondhand smoke.In addition to this there is increasing evidence that an individuals exposure to passive smoke can affect the cardiovascular system. (Scollo, 2003).

Conclusion

Smoking publicly has negative effects on the health of those who work in the public places especially the bars workers. On the contrary smoking in public places brings a sense of belonging and identity to those who smoke since they can easily identify with other public smokers in the public setting as they share similar habits. Public smoking needs to be controlled so as to reduce the negative effects that come as a result of the exposure of individuals to the fumes. (The New York Times, 2003).

Reference

Scollo, M. (2003): Review of the quality of studies on the economic effects of smoke-free policies on the hospitality industry. Tobacco Control, pgs 13-20.

The New York Times (2003): Bars and Restaurants Thrive Amid Smoking Ban, New York Times Archives.

Introduction

Credibility material: how do you really feel when some of the problems you or your relative or even friends face due to smoking? And is it possible to stop smoking after you have been told that smoking will definitely give you serious health problems? Well, I had a friend who became a chain smoker. He used to wake and the first thing that went into his mouth was a cigarette stick, then any other thing will follow thereafter. My friend had been experiencing persistent coughs that made him suspect he might have contracted HIV virus yet he had not yet spent with a woman. But he went for HIV test which proved negative. He continued smoking as he sought out the cough issue in his own ways. One day he became very ill and the cough became even worse. As a friend I accompanied him to a local hospital where he was diagnosed with cancer. The doctor’s advice was that he should stop smoking; however, he never adhered to the doctor’s advice and later died of serious cancer. That was a sad event caused by what could be avoided.

1. Link to the audience: one of the people who have suffered health complications or death as a result of smoking may be somebody close to you or someone you know.
2. Thesis and preview: today I am privileged to have your audience and I intend to talk to you about the effects of smoking, and also I propose to give a talk on how to solve the problem of smoking.

Shift into the main section of the speech: I will begin by telling you how smoking affects us.

The body

So many people around the world have suffered the effects of smoking. I will talk about these effects in terms of health and financial effects.

• Research has found out that non-smokers are also exposed to dangers related to smoking. It can lead to increased effects of asthma on those who already have asthma, especially children. Taking for instance, available statistics indicate that in the United States of America alone, 53,000 non-smokers are killed by issues related to smoking (San Francisco Tobacco Free Project para1).
• To those who have coronary diseases, second hand smoking increases the risk of the disease and can make it severe. Moreover, those who have high risk factors of the disease can easily be attacked when exposed to smoking environment for long.
• Imagine that being exposed to second hand smoke for only thirty minutes is enough to cause damages to your heart and the damages are just similar to those of an actual or habitual smoker.
• Smoking also affects the unborn: the fetus is affected by secondary smoke inhaled by the mother.
• In women who are young and have not reached menopause, secondary smoke increases the risk of breast cancer.
• Other effects are impaired learning ability of children, increased risk of experiencing spinal pain, and reduced median cotinine levels (Bonnie pp.5-21).Transition: I believe that you can now realize that smoking does not only affect the smoker, but even the non-smokers and the unborn. The problems related to smoking affects all of us, but the smokers are more exposed than non-smokers even though in some of the problems both groups suffer are just the same. Now I will tell you about the risks smokers directly face.

Habitual smokers are exposed to:

• Habitual smokers are at a very high risk of cancer. It has been known that smoking is one of the leading causes of cancer. Taking the case of United Kingdom alone, approximately 106, 000 individuals die annually due to smoke related cancer.
• Some of the diseases caused and or worsened by smoking include, lung cancer, diseases of the heart, chronic obstructive pulmonary diseases and also circulation problems.
• To pregnant women, smoking is highly likely to cause miscarriages, complications, poor development of the child which may continue after birth and it may also result into still birth or death of the child in the first one week of birth (Litt 29).
• Smoking also has economic and other effects on smokers. Smokers, especially heavy chain smokers, use a lot of money as cigarette expenditures. Some of other effects of smoking include, bad breath, clothes and home environment smell stale tobacco, reduces sense of taste, life insurance of smokers are damn expensive and potential employers may not like smokers due to the possibility of constant seek leave.Transition: you can see how much risk smokers are exposed to. It is important to note that these risks can potentially result into deaths. However, it is possible to avoid all these smoking related problems. Now, my last discussion will be on how to solve the problem of smoking.

The only effective way in solving the problem is to stop smoking. But the question somebody may be asking is, “How do I stop smoking?” I will give some ways on how to do so:

• Will power is one of the ways to use in solving the problems but the most difficult of all other ways. One should have the courage and have undying persistence on quitting smoking.
• Use nicotine-based chewing gum; even though they still contain nicotine, however, the victim under treatment is not getting the tar into the body system.
• Use anti-depressants under a medical doctor’s guide.
• It is important to stop smoking once diagnosed with problems related with smoking
• Another way to stop smoking is to seek the intervention of a counselor who will guide you on gradual processes of stopping smoking.
• Non-smokers, especially with risky diseases, should avoid smoking environments (Acts 50).

Conclusion

Brakelight/intention to stop: as you can realize, stopping smoking and campaigning against it will be beneficial to all of us.

Summary: I have talked to you about the effects of smoking on both habitual smokers and non-smokers and also on how the problems can be stopped or avoided. All of us must rise up and campaign against smokers or else we will gradually be affected and infected.

Link back to the audience: now that you know the effects of smoking and how to solve it will you help somebody stop smoking? How happy will you be or satisfied will you feel if someone is to come to thank you for helping him or her stop smoking? Let us take the challenge.

Concluding remark: I am going to stop here, but not before I give you a quote by somebody known as Dr. Gro Harlem Brundtland. “A cigarette is the only consumer product which when used as directed kills its consumer.”

References

Acts, Humbler. How to Stop Smoking in 50 Days. New York: Bookway International Services, 2001.

Bonnie, Richard. Ending the Tobacco Problem: A Blueprint for the Nation. New York: National Academies Press, 2007.

Litt, Iris. Taking our pulse: The health of America’s women. New York: Stanford University Press, 1997.

San Francisco Tobacco Free Project. “Untitled.” 2010.