Smoking

SMOKING HABITS AMONG COLLEGE STUDENTS

College students are heavily targeted by the tobacco industry, which makes cigarettes readily available to them and easy to obtain. To help your college-bound teen resist the urge to take up tobacco use while at school, it 's important to recognize the smoking influences that college student’s face daily. These are the pressures that College student tends to smoke.

Friends
Many college students yearn for acceptance. After graduating high school, a new persona and group of friends may present themselves to a college student. If a student is looking for acceptance from a group that includes smokers, the student may try smoking to gain that acceptance. A study performed by the Harvard School of Public Health and published in a 2004 issue of "Pediatrics" found that 51 percent of the smokers studied called themselves "social smokers" while at school, meaning they only smoked when spending time with others.

Partying
College students are bound to enjoy partying and their new-found freedom when they reach the legal drinking age. Unfortunately, many people develop the habit of smoking when they 're drinking. The various parties and social events that most college students attend are accompanied by the pressure to try smoking along with the rest of the party-goers. The added freedom of being away from parents for the first time could lead to infrequent smoking at parties.

Weight Loss
The "Freshman 15" is something that many new college students fear. Taking advantage of college food services and the freedom to eat more junk food can cause weight gain. A college student may believe that smoking cigarettes can curb the appetite and help her lose weight, notes KidsHealth.org, a division of the Nemours Foundation. Instead, smoking makes physical activity harder, so a student may be less likely to work out and, in turn, lose weight in unhealthy ways.
Stress
Some college students use cigarettes as a way to reduce stress, notes the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Students may believe that smoking calms them during high-stress situations like the class workload, earning money while at school and social difficulties. While nicotine can give students a temporary calming effect, smoking can cause more stress when they 're trying to quit or when cigarettes are unavailable.
Promotional Events
The tobacco industry sees college students as legal new smokers, which is why it promotes heavily to those away at college. The Harvard School of Public Health College Alcohol Study notes that some events are sponsored by tobacco companies, and free cigarettes are often distributed at sponsored parties and bar events. The availability and desirability of sponsored tobacco parties makes it easy for a college student to begin smoking.

Bibliography: http://www.livestrong.com/article/237322-smoking-influences-on-college-students/#ixzz2cy31zJfp

References
"Pediatrics, Oct. 2004": Social Smoking Among US College Students: Susan Moran, MD, MSCE, Henry Wechsler, PhD, Nancy A. Rigotti, MD
CDC: College Health and Safety
KidsHealth.org: Beating the Freshman 15
Harvard School of Public Health: US College Students ' Exposure to Tobacco Promotions: Prevalence and Association With Tobacco Use

References: "Pediatrics, Oct. 2004": Social Smoking Among US College Students: Susan Moran, MD, MSCE, Henry Wechsler, PhD, Nancy A. Rigotti, MD CDC: College Health and Safety KidsHealth.org: Beating the Freshman 15 Harvard School of Public Health: US College Students ' Exposure to Tobacco Promotions: Prevalence and Association With Tobacco Use