Most NMI youths tried smoking • Anti-smoking advocates say findings strengthen need to establish effective anti tobacco use program

Initial result of the tobacco survey now being conducted by the Department of Public Health disclosed that an estimated eight percent of Commonwealth youth have tried cigarette smoking.

This was revealed by DPH Tobacco Master Settlement Advisory Committee member Malinda Matson during the American Cancer Society’s 2001 Relay Rally held at the Pacific Island Club Thursday night.

Ms. Matson said the figure is more reason why the health department should proceed with its planned two-year tobacco education forum which will be funded under the Legacy Foundation Grant.

The Legacy Foundation Grant receives certain percentage of the Tobacco Master Settlement Agreement that can be used for education program and campaign against cigarette smoking.

Presently, Ms. Matson said the advisory board is mapping out a locally relevant education program to be participated in by students from various schools in the Commonwealth.

The two-day Youth Summit will discuss measures on how to prevent CNMI youth from trying and using tobacco. Through the summit, people can grasp the hazards and ill effects of smoking not only to the smokers but to others, the committee member explained.

The second part of the grant will tap the assistance of Public School System to discover how to help parents talk out smoking problems with their children.

Ms. Matson said PSS is experiencing difficulty in dealing with students who smoke. Most of these kids are currently on their 6th grade.

She added that part of the problem is PSS’ difficulty to mete out sanctions for fear of suspension might only aggravate the problem.

“The difficult part is how to target the youth in education program without targeting the parents,” she said adding that long term smoking education program can be developed through local government matching funds.

The Legacy Foundation has appropriated an estimated $160,000 for the two-year grant which will comprehensively discuss prevention and education on tobacco use.

DPH pediatrician Norma Ada on the other hand said tobacco use is a community problem that must be addressed and a tobacco control program which is viable and can be sustained.

Airing the same concern she had during the Tobacco Master Settlement public hearing recently, Dr. Ada said CNMI should carefully study how California effectively promoted their anti-smoking campaign.

Based on a statistics released by California local government, concerted efforts against tobacco use resulted on 40 percent decrease on lung cancer and other heart related ailments.

Also, studies have said that teens whose favorite stars smoked in two films were 1.5 times more likely to score on the upper end of the scale, while those whose favorite stars smoked in three or more films were three times as likely to do so.

The report made by Dartmouth College researchers and published in the medical journal “Tobacco Control” studied over 600 students 10 to 19 years of age. The conclusion of the report suggest that stars who smoke on-screen encourage teens to try out smoking.

The authors said “We believe this evidence strongly suggests that media portrayals of tobacco use by popular movie stars contribute to adolescent smoking.”

In 1999 another frightening report by the Office of National Drug Control Policy studied Substance Use in Popular Movies and Music. It studied the 1996 and 1997 top 200 movie rentals and discovered that a whopping 98 percent of the actors were depicted as smoking, drinking or doing drugs in these movies. Alcohol and tobacco were in more than 90 percent of the movies. (EGA)