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CG 020 483

Stronck, David R.Tobacco: The Real Story. It's Your Choice.ISBN-0-941816-34-687

35p.; For other books in this series, see CG 020482-490.Network Publications, 1700 Mission Street, Suite 203,P.O. Box 1830, Santa Cruz, CA 95061-1830 ($2.95;discounts for quantity).Reports - General (140) -- Guides - Classroom Use -Instructional Materials (For Learner) (051)

MF01 Plus Postage. PC Not Available from EDRS.Adolescents; *Decision Making; *Drug Abuse; HealthEducation; Instructional Materials; IntermediateGrades; Junior high Schools; Junior High SchoolStudents; *Preadolescents; Preventinn, *Smoking;*Student Responsibility; *Tobacco

This informational book on tobacco is part of aseries of three interactive books on tobacco, alcohol, and marijuana;three informational books containing parallel content; and threeteacher guides designed to give students in grades five through eightpractice in using the information and skill3 presented in the books.The goal of this book and the accompanying interactive book andteacher guide is to prevent tobacco use by preadolescents. This bookdiscusses the physical and psychological effects of smoking andchewing tobacco and explains why young people should avoid the use oftobacco products. It tells what is wrong with tobacco, gives reasonswhy some adults say they smoke, explains the meaning of addiction,tells why some people quit smoking, and discusses health problemsfrom tobacco. It explains why some young people start to smoke or usetobacco products, considers tobacco and advertising, notes that manyyoung people never want to start smoking, and describes how peoplebegin to smoke. The book concludes by explaining to students that thedecision to smoke is their decision and that they have a choice.(NB)

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IT'S YOUR CHOICE

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ITS YOUR CHOICENonfiction Seriesby David R. Strom*

ALCOHOL: The Real StoryTOBACCO: The Real Story

MARIJUANA: The Real Story

ITS YOUR CHOICEFiction Series

by C;lnstine DeVautirSyran Strong

Serena's Secret (Alcohol)Danny's Dilemma (Tobacco)Christy's Chance (Marijuana)

IT'S YOUR CHOICETeacher's Guidesare also available.

Attention: Schools and OrganizationsIT'S YOUR CHOICE books are available at quantity discountswith bulk purchase for education, business or promotionaluse. For information, please write or call:

Special Sales DepartmentNetwork Publications

A Division of ETR AssociatesP.O. Box 1830

Santa Cruz, CA 95061-1830(408) 429-9822

3

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Stronck, David R.Tobacco: the real story

(It's your choice)Summary: Discusses the physical ind psychological

effects of smoking and chewing tobacco and why youngpeople should avoid its use.

1. Smoking--juvenile literature. 2. Tobacco habit--Juvenile literature. 11. Smoking. 2. Tobacco habit. 3. Con-duct of lifel I. Ransom, Robert, ill. It. Title. III. Series.HV5745.S74 1987 362.2 87-18548ISBN 0-941816-34-6 (pbk.)

Copyright © 1987 by Network Publications, a division ofETR Associates. All rights reserved.Except as permitted under the United States Copyright Actof 1976, no part of this publication may be reproduced ordistributed in any form or by any means, or stored in a database or retrieval system, without the prior written permissionof the publisher.

For more information contact:Network PublicationsP.O. Box 1830Santa Cruz, CA 95061-1830(408) 429-9822

ISBN 0-941816-34-6

TOBACCO:The Real Story

David R. Stronck

Illustrated by Robert Ransor

Network Publicationsa division of ETR Associates

Santa Cruz, CA1987

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TOBACCO SMOKEHave you ever been in a room or car filled withcigarette, cigar or pipe smoke? Most people areforced to breathe such air at some time in theirlives. Tobacco smoke makes some peoplecough and feel like they can't breathe. Theireyes begin to water and hurt. Others don't seembothered by smoke. Which type of person areyou?

WHAT'S WRONG WITH TOBACCO?The main problem with tobacco is that it con-tains a dangerous drug called nicotine. Nicotineis a natural insecticide the tobacco plant makesto kill insects that might attack it. But our govern-ment bans farmers from using nicotine as aninsecticide because it is too poisonous to sprayon crops.

The amount of nicotine in one cigarette is verysmall. Yet one cigarette placed in a home's fishtank can quickly kill all the fish in the tank. Isn't

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Nicotine is a dangerous drug.

it strange tilat people like something that is sopoisonous?

But they do. They smoke the leaves of thetobacco plant in cigarettes, cigars and pipes.Other people chew tobacco or use snuff. All to-bacco brings nicotine into the body of the per-son who uses it.

TOBACCO:

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Another problem with tobacco is that it containstars. Tars are brown, gummy materials that stickto other things. When a smoker inhales, bothtars and nicotine go into the lungs. Quicklysome of the cells in the lungs die or are no longerable to protect the surface of the lungs. Tars stayin the lungs for a very long time. Adults whosmoke must stop for 7 years before their lungs goback to a normal condition.

Tars and nicotine cause cells in the lungs to die.

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Many smokers think they can protect them-selves by smoking low-tar or filter cigarettes. Butthey usually just smoke more of these cigarettesto get the amount of nicotine they're used to. Sowhile they may think they are helping them-selves, these smokers are still likely to be lesshealthy than nonsmokers.

A third problem with cigarettes is smoke. Ciga-rette smoke contains a colorless, odorless gascalled carbon monoxide. This gas also comesfrom automobiles and factories where wood orother materials are burned.

Our government will not allow people to workin factories where carbon monoxide reachesmore than 50 parts per million of the air. Thisamount can cause headaches and upset stom-achs. Laboratory animals show confusion andharm to their blood from this level. In a roomwhere several people are smoking, the amountof carbon monoxide will often go over 50 partsper million. This "secondhand smoke" can af-

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Cigarette smoke contains carbon monoxide, a poisonous gas.

fect anyone in the room, whether they aresmoking or not.

Special chemicals are added to cigarettes tokeep them burning even when the smoker is notpuffing the cigarette.These chemicals makecigarettes a dangerous fire hazard. And they areharmful to the inside of the mouth, throat andlungs.

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Since 1964 we have suspected that smokingcauses lung cancera slow and painful way todie. Cigarette makers were forced to print anotice on each package of cigarettes. It said:

Warning: Cigarette Smoking MayBe Hazardous to Your Health.

In 1979 the surgeon general of the United Statesdiscovered even more evidence that smokingdamages people's bodies. Cigarette packagesand ads now must warn people that:

Smoking By Pregnant Women MayResult in Fetal Injury, Premature

Birth, and Low Birth Weight.

Cigarette Smoke Contains CarbonMonoxide.

Quitting Smoking Now Greatly ReducesSerious Risks

to Your Health.

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Have you seen these warnings in cigarette ads in

magazines, or printed on the packages of ciga-rettes? So why do people smoke? Why do theybuy and use such a dangerous product? Let'stake a look.

WHY DO SOME ADULTS SMOKE?The American Cancer Society asked many adultsmokers why they smoke. Here are some of theanswers they gave:

"Smoking helps me wake up."This is true. Doctors know that nicotine makesthe heart beat faster and the blood pressure goup. This makes the person feel more alert.

Another way to get this feeling is to exercise. ifyou ride your bicycle to school in the n.Jrning,you probably get some of the same alert feelings

a smoker getswithout the risks a smoker takes.

Can you think of other ways a person might useto wake up?

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Riding a bike, you may get the alert feelings a smoker gets.

"I like handling the cigarette."Some smokers like to keep their hands busy. Sotaking the cigarette out of the package, handlingit, striking the match or lighter, lighting thecigarette feels good to them. What other thingscould a person do to keep his or her hands busy?

"I like relaxing with a cigarette."Ads try to make people think that smoking is partof enjoying a good dinner, having fun or being

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in sports. Do you think people can really ridehorses, swim, play tennis and ski while smok-ing?

The best athletes do not smoke. They knowtobacco hurts their breathing. Can you think ofways to relax and have fun without cigarettes?

"Smoking helps me stay thinwithout ciga-rettes I'd be fat."Some people do eat less when they smoke.Smoking destroys their sense of taste, so fooddoesn't taste good to them. Smokers may putcigarettes in their mouths instead of food. Doessmoking seem like a good, healthy way to keepfrom gaining too much weight? Are there otherthings a person can do to keep from beingoverweight?

"I need a cigarette to help me face my prob-lems."Some smokers think tobacco helps solve theirproblems. Smoking can take your mind off theproblem for a moment, but when you finish the

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Smoking is not a healthy way to keep from gaining weight.

cigarette the problem is still there! Can youthink of other things people could do about theirproblems?

i have the habit of smoking."Some people just keep lighting up cigaretteswithout thinking about what they are doing.When they try to do without cigarettes, they findit's very hard. They may be addicted to cigarettesand not know it.

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Have you ever asked some adults why theysmoke? You may get the same answers that theAmerican Cancer Society got. You will find outthat almost everyone who uses tobacco wants tostop. But they can't stop easily because they areaddicted. The addiction controls them.

WHAT DOES "ADDICTION' MEAN?Doctors know that the drug nicotine in tobaccois addictive. An addiction is a habit that is veryhard to change. It makes people do things theywouldn't normally do to get what they're ad-dicted toin this case tobacco.

This is why they do not stop smoking eventhough smoking is dangerous. This is why theydon't stop smoking when their friends andfamily beg them to stop. Almost every adult whosmokes will tell young people not to start.

Smoking tobacco, chewing tobacco and snuffare all addictive. Many people get tired of beingcontrolled by this addiction. They know theyhave lost much of their freedom. They must

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Smoking is an addiction that controls you.

always be buying tobacco, matches or lighters,finding ash trays and losing time from work andplay.

Very few young people call themselves smokerswhen they first start smoking. They may besmoking a whole pack of cigarettes each dayand still not think they're smokers. They think aperson makes a real choice to become a smoker.But people become addicted by slowly drifting

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into the habit. The smoker may never make areal choice. But their bodies know they're smok-erscigarettes start working on the body rightaway. And soon the victim is hooked and can'tstop.

In recent years, large numbers of adults havetried to give up smoking. Anyone who hasstopped smoking can tell you it isn't easy. Somepeople pay a lot of money to others to help themstop. Some smokers never stop, even thoughthey want to very much. They are addicted.

Can you think of other things that are addictive?

SOME REASONS WHY ADULTS QUIT SMOKING(OR NEVER START)

Some people smoke until they become very sickand their doctor tells them they will die if theydon't stop. Others stop smoking (or never start)for reasons that have little to do with their health.Here are some of their reasons:

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Smoking causes bad breath and smelly clothes.Kissing someone who smokes is unpleasant.Many people don't want to get close to asmoker, let alone kiss him or her.

Smoking makes teeth and fingers turn yellowand dirty looking. The stains on the hands arelong lasting and ugly and don't wash away withsoap. Some smokers use a special tooth paste tohelp remove the yellow stains on the teeth, butnothing can make a smoker's teeth as white asthey were before.

Many people don't like to be around smokersbecause they don't want to breathe smoke. Thissecondhand smoke is annoying and dangerousto their health. It gets into the clothes and hair ofeveryone around the smoker and smells bad.

Many towns have passed laws against smokingin restaurants and other public places. So smok-ers must smoke only in certain places. They havelost the freedom to go where other people wantto enjoy clean air.

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Kissing someone who smokes is geasant.

Smoking destroys much of the sense of smelland taste. Smokers lose most of the joy fromfoods, drinks, flowers, the air. Everything tastesand smells like cigarettes.

Smoking causes the skin to wrinkle. It makespeople look much older. Most adults like to lookas young as they really are.

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Cigarettes burn holes in clothing, car seats, fur-niture, floors and carpets. A smoker can easilydrop ashes, fire or the whole cigarette. Smokersoften leave cigarettes "just for a minute" andthen forget about them. These forgotten ciga-rettes can cause ugly burns or fires.

Cigarettes cause many major fires. People whosmoke in bed can start a fire without knowing it,turn out the light and fall asleep. Most hotel andmotel fires are caused by cigarettes. Thousandsof people die from fires started by smokers or bychildren playing with matches that belong tosmokers.

Tobacco is expensive. it's hard to talk about theprice of cigarettes because it keeps going up. Tomake things easy, let's say a package of ciga-rettes is $1. (It is actually much higher in someplaces). A person who smokes a package ofcigarettes a day will be spending around $30 amonth or $365 a year on tobacco! If a personstarted smoking in the 6th grade, how muchmoney would he or she spend by the age of 18?

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Can you think of other things you might spendthat much money on?

HEALTH PROBLEMS FROM TOBACCOAll these reasons are good reasons not to smoke.But the biggest reason adults stop or want to stopsmoking is that smoking makes them sick. Hereare some health problems smokers are !ikely tohave:

Smokers are three times more likely than othersto cough. Smoking begins to destroy the lungssoon after a person starts smoking. They cannotbreathe as well. Their lungs can no longer movemucus well. Mucus is the slippery liquid thatcoats and protects the inside of the nose, mouth,lungs and stomach.

Smoking begins the steps leading to a diseasecalled emphysema. This disease cannot becured. A person with emphysema has big holesin the lungs and they have trouble breathing.Some people with emphysema must carry anoxygen tank to help them breathe. Almost all

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people with emphysema got the disease fromsmoking.

Smoking causes lung cancer. Nine out of tenpersons who get lung cancer smoke. The smokechanges some of the lung cells into cancer cells.These cells grow out of control and crowd outhealthy cells. Cancer tumors grow as bloody,stinking masses that are very painful. Fewpeople with lung cancer live more than a coupleof years after a doctor finds the cancer.

Smoking causes cancers in many other parts ofthe body: the lips, mouth, throat, stomach andbladder. Chewing tobacco can lead to cancer ofthe lips, tongue and throat.

More smokers die from heart attacks than fromcancers. Smokers are four times more likely tohave a heart attack than nonsmokers. And asmoker who has a heart attack is 40% morelikely to die than a nonsmoker who has a heartattack.

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Young people who smoke already show greaterdeposits of fat in the blood vessels leading to andfrom the heart. When blood can't get to the heart(because the vessels are blocked with fat depos-its), the person has a heart attack.

Babies of mothers who smoke while they arepregnant are often born too small and too early.Heavy smoking greatly increases the chances ofhaving deformed babies. These babies some-

Smoking and chewing tobacco can lead to cancer of the lips.

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times can't pass food through their stomachs.Some die before they are born.

As you can see, there are many good reasons notto smoke. Yet many young people start smoking,especially in grades 6, 7 and 8. Why do youthink young people start to smoke?

WHY DO YOUNG PEOPLE START TO SMOKE ORUSE TOBACCO?

A large group of students who smoke answeredquestions about why they started. Most of theirreasons have nothing to do with wanting to-bacco, at least not at first. Here are some of theirreasons:

They want to pretend they are adults. They knowthat some adults use some kind of tobacco. Thelaw doesn't allow tobacco products to be sold toyoung people. Some young people feel thatdoing something only adults are supposed to doautomatically makes them grown up.

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They want to be accepted by their friends whosmoke. Tobacco is a way to become a memberof some gangs. They meet in small groups andstand around smoking cigarettes. Others chewtobacco or use snuff. Do you think the only wayto be a part of such groups is to use tobacco?Does this seem like a good reason to startsmoking?

They think smoking is fun and glamorous. Ciga-rette ads make smoking seem like a grownupand romantic thing to do. Young people whosmoke probably believe the ads.

They think smoking must be pleasant. At first thesmoke burns the throat and chokes the smoker.Many youngsters ignore this because they arewaiting for the pleasure of smoking. They be-lieve people must smoke because they like it.

They want to try what is forbidden. It's hard foryoung people to believe adults who tell themhow dangerous tobacco is, when so many adultsuse it.

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They want to show their independence. Someyoung people want to act against the advice ofparents, teachers and other adults. In this waythey think they are showing their strength to actalone.

TOBACCO AND ADVERTISINGThe Rj. Reynolds Tobacco Company puts an ad

in some magazines and newspapers. It says,

"Don't smoke. For one thing, smoking has al-

ways been an adult custom...you may not be oldenough to smoke." This ad tells young peoplenot to smoke because smoking is an adult thingto do. But the advice causes many youngsters to

want to try the forbidden and join the adultwoild by smoking.

Some young athletes start chewing tobaccobecause other players on their team are doing it.They watch TV and see some of the stars chew-ing and spitting. Magazine ads show people in

sports using tobacco. The ads don't say thatchewing tobacco can lead to cancer of themouth, gums or throat. And they don't mention

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that a 19-year-old man recently died of cancerof the tongue from chewing tobacco.

Virginia Slims cigarettes sponsors a tennis tour-nament for women. The ads show healthywomen. This ad seems to say that smokingcigarettes and being an athlete go together. Butevery coach knows that a smoker loses muchbreathing power. It only takes a few cigarettes tobe slowed down in running. So even one smokeron a team can slow down everyone else.

MANY YOUNG PEOPLE NEVER WANT TO USETOBACCO

If you are lucky you may have little or notemptation to take up smoking or chewing. Oneor more of the following reasons may make iteasy for you to say no:

Your friends do not smoke or chew. They allthink smoking or chewing tobacco is silly anddisgusting and a waste of money and health.

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Your parents do not smoke. There is no tobaccoaround your house and you have not been

around many adults who smoke.

You hate the smell of tobacco in the air, onfurniture and especially on peoplein theirclothes, hair and on their breath.

You think cigarettes and chewing tobacco tastehorrible and gross and spitting is disgusting.

HOW PEOPLE BEGIN SMOKING OR USINGTOBACCO

Your decisions about tobacco may not be so

easy. You may be forced to make some grown-up choices while you are still young. But if youknow you don't want to use tobacco you don'thave to. No one can make you smoke.

Everyone is different. Young people who begin

using tobacco do so in many different situations.Would you be tempted to start in any of the fol-lowing examples? Can you think of ways you

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might avoid smoking in each of these situations?

A friend asks you to smoke a cigarette with himor her. This is not a bully forcing you. This is afriend. Perhaps it is your birthday party and thefriend says, "Happy birthday. Here's a presentfor you. Now that you're 12 years old, try acigarette and join the older world."

How could you say no without hurting thefriend's feelings? Your friend might reason thatone cigarette won't hurt anything, or that tryinga few cigarettes doesn't mean you're a realsmoker.

You could lake the cigarette, put it aside and notsmoke it. If your friend asks why you don't lightit you could reply that you're busy doing otherthings. You could also say you need to thinkabout such an important decision as smokingand that you'd like to find out more aboutcigarettes before you decide to smoke.

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ci Your friends are smoking at a party. No one saysyou should smoke. But it seems like a good wayto join in having a good time.

Not joining your friends is hard. But it is easierthan trying to quit after you have become ad-dicted to tobacco. Why not be a leader insteadof a follower? There are probably others in yourgroup who would rather not smoke but who

Be a leader! Say no to tobacco.

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aren't strong enough to say "No thank you."They will be glad if you say it first!

You are alone at home and your parents, whosmoke cigarettes, have left their cigarettes andmatches on the kitchen table. You know aboutsmoking because you have watched your par-ents light up and inhale smoke all your life.

You may be curious about trying a cigarette.What is the flavor like? Will it taste good? Hereis what you can expect: you will have a burning,choking feeling in your mouth and throat. Youwill cough and the cigarette may even upsetyour stomach. Your eyes may begin to burn andwater. Does this sound like fun? Many young-sters keep trying in hope of finding somethingmore pleasant. If they try long enough, theybecome addicted. Why not make up your mindnow about what makes sense to you?

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as YOUR CHOICEBy reading this book, you have learned muchabout tobacco and its use. Some people yourage use tobacco without really thinking aboutwhat they are doing. You might want to make achoice to show that you are old enough to studya situation and make a decision based on factsinstead of drifting along without knowing whatis happening to you or your body. Think aboutit. It's your life. You have only one body to carefor.

You have only one body to care for.

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About this BookTOBACCO- The Real Story is part of an important new series ofbooks designed to help young people make informed, respon-sible decisions about drug use. Other books in the series includeMARIJUANA: The Real Story and ALCOHOL: The Real Story.

The development of these books was supported by funds fromthe National Institute of Child Health and Development. Theyhave gone through extensive testing with preadolescents andhave been carefully reviewed by substance abuse profession-als. The committee of professionals not only gave initial inputto determine appropriate content, but also reviewed the booksduring development.

The series provides young people with critical informationabout substance abuse, and prepares them to deal with socialsituations in which they are most likely to encounter marijuana,alcohol and tobacco.

About the Author

Author David R. Stronck, PhD, is professor of science educationat California State University at Hamard. He has extensiveexperience writing school texts and has published numerousarticles in scholarly journals. He has been the editor of theCalifornia Science Teacher's Journal and serves as a consultantto school districts.

Also available as part of this series are three interactive fictionbooks. Serena's Secret, Danny's Dilemma and Christy's Chancecombine substance abuse information and models for resistingpeer pressure in the popular interactive adventure book format.The characters in these interactive books are presented withchoices about drug use. The reader makes a decision for thecharacter, turns to the appropriate page and learns the conse-quences of that particular choice. One interactive story can bereread many times. Each time the story is different dependingon the reader's choices.

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LEARN THE REAL STORY ABOUT TOBACCO

This book tells you the facts about smoking and chewingtobacco. Many young people don't really make a choiceabout using tobacco. They let others tell them what to do.TOBACCO: The Real Rol/gives you the information youneed to make your own decision.

What's wrong with using tobacco?Why do some adults smoke?What does addiction mean?

Why do people quit smoking?What health problems do smokers have?

Why do some people use tobacco?How can you say no ti. tubacco?

It's your life! Be sure you're the onewho's in charge of it.

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