At a time when the neutrality of cigarette packs is debated, a recent American study shows that young people are unconsciously pushed to smoke by… their parents when they are smokers. Indeed, teenagers are more likely to become addicted to nicotine when mom or dad are already. To reach this conclusion, the study published in the journal American Journal of Public Health , analyzed 35,000 parent-adolescent pairs between 2004 and 2012. The figures are telling:only 13% of teenagers of non-smoking parents say they have ever smoked, compared to nearly 40% of teenagers of smoking parents, who have already smoked their first cigarette.
And among teen smokers, only 5% of teens whose parents are non-smokers are truly "addicted" to nicotine. On the other hand, 15% cannot do without it when one of the parents is dependent. The most surprising thing about the study? Girls would be those who are most influenced by parental behavior, especially that of their mother towards smoking.
