I'd like to address the subject line "Why people smoke".

It's important not to spend a lot of time fussing over why people smoke when
the answer is so simple and the evidence for it abounds.

People smoke because they get addicted as children and youth, at a time when
they do not recognize the addictiveness of nicotine.  The Surgeon General
says nicotine is as addictive as heroin..

To take it one step farther, people also become addicted because the tobacco
industry continues to promote products to kids through tobacco product
displays in every store across the country.  They normalize tobacco - put it
beside candy and the like.  That's why it's so important to de-normalize the
illegal activities of the industry as well as activities that are legal but
immoral.

For more information on how the industry targets kids, please go to
"Physicians for a Smoke-Free Canada" website at:
http://www.smoke-free.ca/Business/business_campaigns.htm


> ----------
> From:         Dennis Raphael[SMTP:[log in to unmask]]
> Reply To:     Health Promotion on the Internet
> Sent:         March 25, 2003 8:34 AM
> To:   [log in to unmask]
> Subject:      Why people smoke...
>
> <<File: ATT25008.txt>>
> Many of us have trouble understanding why smokers do not listen to our
> dire
> threats about tobacco use.  The reason  is that most smokers -- even heavy
> ones
> -- know that the odds are actually with them when it comes down to dying
> of lung
> cancer and other diseases.  And when you balance the benefits of tobacco
> use --
> especially for the poor and marginalized  -- with the risks,  smoking can
> be
> seen as a rational means of coping.
>
> See the following article from Time magazine.
>
> Dennis Raphael, PhD
> Associate Professor and Undergraduate Program Director
> School of Health Policy and Management
> Atkinson Faculty of Liberal and Professional Studies
> York University
> 4700 Keele Street
> Toronto, Ontario M3J 1P3
> tel: 416-736-2100, ext. 22134
> fax: 416-736-5227
> email: [log in to unmask]
> website: http://quartz.atkinson.yorku.ca/QuickPlace/draphael/Main.nsf/
>
>
>

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