Risk for Initiation of Cigarette Smoking in Teens

A practical 12-item tool predicts cigarette smoking initiation within the next year in adolescents.

Adults who smoke cigarettes often initiate their smoking in adolescence. To examine predictors of initiation among teens, researchers analyzed longitudinal questionnaire responses from 833 Canadian students initially aged 12 to 13 years who had never smoked.

Self-reported data were obtained every three months of the 10-month school year during the study period (1999–2005). After assessing 58 candidate variables for predicting smoking initiation (taking the first puff on a cigarette) within 1 year, 12 variables were validated as predictive.

Sixteen percent of the study population met the criteria for cigarette smoking initiation during the study. Predictive variables fell into categories of worry or stress, depression, self-esteem, and alcohol…

Reviewing Author

F. Bruder Stapleton, MD

Disclosures

Consultant/Advisory BoardCareer Physician

Editorial BoardsUpToDate

Leadership Positions in Professional SocietiesAmerican Society of Pediatric Nephrology Foundation (Chair)

F. Bruder Stapleton, MD

Disclosures

Consultant/Advisory BoardCareer Physician

Editorial BoardsUpToDate

Leadership Positions in Professional SocietiesAmerican Society of Pediatric Nephrology Foundation (Chair)

Risk for Initiation of Cigarette Smoking in Teens

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Reviewing Author