Tobacco Facts
Tobacco Facts
Young people may use tobacco to get the following effects:
-stimulated brain and body functions;
-faster heartbeat;
-relaxation;
-feeling calm;
-having a sense of wellbeing.
Young people who use tobacco may show the following behaviour:
-personality changes (being moody);
-using incense to mask the smell of tobacco;
-carrying cigarette lighter or box of matches;
-knowing the brands of cigarettes well;
-having small burn holes on clothing.
Young people who use tobacco may show the following physical effects:
-smell of tobacco on breath or hair;
-nicotine stains on fingers;
-slight loss of appetite;
-sweat more often;
-have cold hands or feet;
-breathe faster;
-may cough more, especially in the mornings.
General facts about tobacco
Tobacco is the second most commonly used drug in New Zealand. Young people in New Zealand today are continuing to experiment and use tobacco. This drug is commonly experimented with long before illegal drugs such as marijuana. Of young people in the 15-1 7 year-old age group, 38.9% of males and 48.3% of females reported trying tobacco. However, only 25.9% of males and 30.4% of females continued to use it (Health Department statistics). The highest proportion of young people using tobacco today are 18-19 year-old women.
The nicotine in tobacco is an extremely harmful drug. It may produce cancer of the lungs, food pipe (oesophagus), wind pipe (pharynx), voice box, mouth, bladder and pancreas. Nicotine remains one of the main causes of heart disease in New Zealand, as well as being responsible for other conditions such as chronic bronchitis and emphysema.
Nicotine is a stimulant, despite the fact that people have a cigarette to relax. It is extremely addictive and possibly more difficult to give up than hard illegal drugs.
Passive smoking (people inhaling the smoke of others who are smoking near them) has reduced since the introduction of the Smoke Free Environments Act 1990 which restricts people from smoking in designated areas and bans tobacco advertising.
Passive smoking is considered very dangerous, because the harmful by-products are not filtered. A passive smoker is receiving approximately two to four times more of the drugs than the smoker.
For more information, please feel free to email Senior Constable Ian Browne
