Happy Kick Butts Day!
Today – and every day – youth across Wisconsin are
working hard to expose and counteract the deadly tactics of the tobacco
industry. These young people know that Big Tobacco is targeting them to become
lifetime customers. They also know that it is essential to talk
peer-to-peer about the importance of being tobacco-free.
It is incredibly inspiring to see young people
fight back against Big Tobacco. It’s also critical to the health of their
generation.
Recently the U.S. Surgeon General released a
report on youth and tobacco. The report concluded that our progress in lowering
rates of tobacco use has stalled.
The report included a lot of daunting facts
about youth tobacco use. Here are three:
- The younger a person is when they start using tobacco, the more likely that person will be addicted.
- Nearly 90% of smokers start before age 18 and 99% start before age 26.
- We have a staggering replacement rate – every person who dies from smoking-related causes is replaced by two new, young smokers.
In short, we are facing a pediatric epidemic.
In Wisconsin, tobacco companies spend $233
million a year marketing their deadly products, which blows away the $5.3 million we spend on the state’s tobacco prevention and control program each year. From colorful
packaging and onscreen smoking in children’s movies to candy-flavored
mini-cigars and smokeless tobacco that looks like breath mints, it is clear
that tobacco corporations are finding creative ways to reach young customers.
To counter the $1 million an hour that tobacco
spends marketing their deadly products in the U.S., last Thursday the CDC
launched its first-ever national advertising campaign encouraging people to
quit smoking. The hard-hitting campaign, “Tips from a Former Smoker,” features
real people who are suffering from life-altering health problems and major diseases as a result of tobacco use.
The campaign highlights that tobacco is not
only the leading preventable cause of death (killing nearly 8,000 a year in
Wisconsin alone) – it also leads to serious long-term suffering. The “Tips from
a Former Smoker” ads hit the airwaves this week in communities across
Wisconsin. You can view the compelling ads here.
We know what works in the fight against tobacco
– higher tobacco taxes, well-funded tobacco prevention programs, and strong
smoke-free laws. We also know that reducing tobacco use will save lives and help
our businesses, families and state save money. Let’s use Kick Butts Day as an
opportunity to re-dedicate ourselves to protecting our kids from Big Tobacco.
Join our youth today in telling tobacco
companies to stop targeting our kids and encourage your communities and leaders
to take a stand against Big Tobacco.
Click here for a list of Kick
Butts Day events in Wisconsin.
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