9781422272329

Smoking and vaping addiction

CIGARETTES AND TOBACCO PRODUCTS The Predatory Drug DEADLY VAPING ADDITIVES CBD, THC, and Contaminants FACTS AND FIGURES Smoking and Vaping NICOTINE ADVERTISING AND SALES Big Business for Young Clientele NICOTINE AND GENETICS The Hereditary Predisposition NICOTINE TREATMENTS Fighting to Breathe Again NICOTINE Negative Effects on the Adolescent Brain PEER PRESSURE TO SMOKE OR VAPE Finding the Strength in You VAPING The New Cool Way to a Shorter Life

ERIC BENAC

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Copyright © 2022 by Mason Crest, an imprint of National Highlights, Inc. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, taping, or any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher. Printed in the United States of America First printing 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 Series ISBN: 978-1-4222-4579-8 Hardcover ISBN: 978-1-4222-4585-9 ebook ISBN: 978-1-4222-7232-9 Cataloging-in-Publication Data on file with the Library of Congress

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CONTENTS

Chapter 1: The Nature of Peer Pressure . ................................. 7 Chapter 2: The Emotional Impact of Peer Pressure . ........... 23 Chapter 3: Examples of Peer Pressure Situations .............39 Chapter 4: Learning How to Resist Peer Pressure ................ 53 Chapter 5: How to Help Others with Positive Peer Pressure . ........................................................ 69 Chapter Notes ............................................................................ 83 Further Reading . ....................................................................... 87 Internet Resources .................................................................... 88 Series Glossary of Key Terms ................................................... 90 Index . .......................................................................................... 92 Author’s Biography / Credits . .................................................. 96 KEY ICONS TO LOOK FOR: Words to Understand: These words with their easy-to-understand definitions will increase the reader’s understanding of the text while building vocabulary skills. Sidebars: This boxed material within the main text allows readers to build knowledge, gain insights, explore possibilities, and broaden their perspectives by weaving together additional information to provide realistic and holistic perspectives. Educational videos: Readers can view videos by scanning our QR codes, providing them with additional educational content to supplement the text. Examples include news coverage, moments in history, speeches, iconic sports moments, and much more! Text-Dependent Questions: These questions send the reader back to the text for more careful attention to the evidence presented there. Research Projects: Readers are pointed toward areas of further inquiry connected to each chapter. Suggestions are provided for projects that encourage deeper research and analysis. Series Glossary of Key Terms: This back-of-the-book glossary contains terminology used throughout this series. Words found here increase the reader’s ability to read and comprehend higher-level books and articles in this field.

adverse: negative or damaging cliché: an idea or concept that is commonplace or overused conform: to change to meet the expectations or requirements of others convoluted: difficult or complex, often needlessly so socioeconomic: referring to a person’s place in society, which is affected by their financial situation Negative peer pressure occurs when someone who is a friend or part of a group you belong to makes you feel that you have to do something, such as smoking or vaping, to be accepted. WORDS TO UNDERSTAND

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Peer Pressure to Smoke or Vape: Finding the Strength in You

1 CHAPTER

The Nature of Peer Pressure

Peer pressure is one of those problems that many people believe they will outgrow as they get older. Unfortunately, this problem never truly goes away. Peer pressure is usually at its worst during the early years of a person’s life. During the teenage years, young people are often put under intense pressure to go along with the things that their friends or peer group are doing. That can include unhealthy habits, such as nicotine use through smoking cigarettes, vaping, or chewing tobacco. The adverse effects that peer pressure can have on a young person can be devastating when not properly managed. Therefore, it is essential to fully understand this danger and avoid it whenever possible. First of all, young people must understand what peer pressure means—it is direct or indirect pressure by members of their peer group to engage in certain actions. Often, the pressure is persistent and unwanted, and the action is something that the person does not want to do. A person’s peer group is usually made up of people similar to them in age, interests, and/or socioeconomic status. For example, your peer group would likely consist of the other young people who live in your neighborhood or those whom you interact with in school, on sports or dance teams, or in other extracurricular activities. Do you

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Nicotine use is the leading cause of preventable death in the United States. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, almost 500,000 Americans die prematurely each year due to diseases caused by tobacco use or exposure to secondhand smoke. 8 Peer Pressure to Smoke or Vape: Finding the Strength in You

know anyone in your grade who smokes or vapes? If they offer you a cigarette or encourage you to try vaping, then they are using peer pressure. Giving in to that pressure could change you in ways that will permanently damage your lungs, heart, and brain. Why People Pressure Others Peer pressure is a problem with a complex origin and convoluted psychology behind it. Kids in your grade who smoke may have many reasons for doing so. Some may have parents who smoke, and their smoking may be an emulation of this adult behavior. Others may want to be rebellious and act out in ways that make them feel like an adult. Some may think that vaping or smoking will make them look attractive or “cool.” Whatever the reason, people your age decide to smoke or vape nearly every day. Often, they try to pressure people in their peer group to join them. Again, there are many reasons for the pressure. Some may think that smoking has benefits that are worth sharing with you. They may like the way that it feels to smoke, and think that you would like it also, or they may just want a friend to share their activity with. That said, there are other influences that may also cause peer pressure. Students in middle school and high school are transitioning from childhood to adulthood. Many young people feel like this is a time for them to leave behind their interests in “childish” things, like toys, sports, or video games, and strive to become more “adult.” This can be positive when young people take on more age-appropriate responsibilities, such as getting a part-time job or taking on additional chores to help out their parents at home. But it can also have negative aspects. Some young people may turn to cigarettes or other tobacco products to feel more “adult” and in control of their life. “Research shows the most impressionable age for peer influence seems to be the middle school years,” notes an article on the website

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The Nature of Peer Pressure

People deal with peer pressure all throughout childhood, but it is most noticeable during the middle school and high school years.

of Talk It Out, an online organization that is intended to help young people avoid making choices that will harm their health. “This is when a child is forming new friendships and choosing an identity among those friends. It is also the most common age for kids to start experimenting with alcohol, drugs, sexual activity and other risky behaviors. Very often, the drive to engage in this kind of behavior is a result of peer pressure. Adolescents who have larger circles of friends appear to be less influenced by the suggestions or actions of their peers, but the pressure to conform is very real at this age.” Unfortunately, friends whom you’ve had all of your life may suddenly turn their backs on you because you aren’t willing to smoke

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Peer Pressure to Smoke or Vape: Finding the Strength in You

with them or engage in other risky behaviors like drinking alcohol or using drugs. Why would anyone care whether or not you smoke? Well, often children at those ages start to break down into social groups, and they want to “gatekeep” people like you. In essence, they may not want to hang out with you anymore if you do not smoke, because they think you aren’t “cool” or “mature” enough to spend time with them. That situation can be very hard to understand, because it can sometimes happen overnight. For example, you may find that a friend who used to love playing video games with you suddenly only wants to smoke cigarettes or try to get drunk instead. For a young pre-teen or teen who has an active social life, it can be very hard to lose friends. So, even if they don’t want to smoke, they may start anyway to please their friends and maintain those relationships. And because nicotine is so addictive, it can be very easy to smoke long after that initial puff. All of these same factors are also true of vaping: the same basic concepts underlie almost all peer pressure, even in older adults who you think would probably know

PEER PRESSURE IS AN INHERENT PART OF THE HUMAN MIND

The desire to fit in with others is not just a concern in middle school, but persists throughout a person’s life. Humans are social creatures who naturally create groups that help to define them. Think of the jocks in your class who play sports, or your gaming friends who constantly play Fortnite or other games. Even adult social groups, such as political parties, churches, and clubs like the Rotary or the Elks, are based on the idea of fitting in and conforming to what others expect.

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The Nature of Peer Pressure

better. “Peer pressure can not only bring about changes in behavior, but also thoughts, opinions, and feelings,” notes the online blog Good Therapy. “While peer pressure is most frequently used to describe the influence of friends on teenagers, all people can be subject to peer pressure.” And that kind of pressure can take many more forms than you may anticipate. Peer Pressure Takes Many Forms The cliché form of peer pressure is seen in endless numbers of anti- drug commercials: a group of people standing around one person and telling them to try marijuana or another drug. Perhaps you’ve run into this kind of situation. Maybe your friend has tried to get you to smoke or vape with them or has gotten a group of people together to pressure you. Unfortunately, this type of problem is likely to happen. “Peer pressure, or influence, comes in several forms, and these types of peer pressure can have a tremendous impact on a young person’s behavior,” notes the Talk it Out website. And if you have experienced this type of peer pressure before, you have been subjected to spoken peer pressure. This type is obvious based on its name: people speak to you to try to get you to smoke or vape. The words that they use don’t matter: they may threaten you, tease you, compliment you, or try to make you feel inferior to them because you don’t smoke. That’s because peer pressure can be considered an attack on your core values or beliefs. If you are firmly against smoking, and somebody tries to get you to try it, they are making fun of your beliefs, whether they realize it or not. Under enough pressure from people your age, it can be very easy to just give up—when you do, a core aspect of who you are as a person changes in a significant way. That said, not all peer pressure is verbal or spoken. Much of it is unspoken, which can be the hardest type to fight. Let’s say that your friends have tried to get you to vape with

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Peer Pressure to Smoke or Vape: Finding the Strength in You

A person who gives in to negative peer pressure often feels guilty or disappointed afterward for acting in a way that violates his or her core beliefs or values.

them for a few months but have finally given up. Success! They may have accepted you as who you are and may still hang out with you at least a few times a week. But every time you hang out, they are vaping around you. In those situations, you may feel left out because they all vape together, talk about their vaping fluids, or perform what looks like fun tricks with the vapor. Part of you feels like you are being left behind, and you may feel pressure from within to conform. That anxiety— often called the Fear of Missing Out (or FOMO) may cause you to join in vaping long after your friends no longer care whether you do it or not. When something like this happens, counselors say that the young person has given in to “indirect” peer pressure. Direct peer pressure would include verbal actions taken by your friends to encourage

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The Nature of Peer Pressure

It can be very hard for young people to resist encouragement from friends to join in their activities. Most people want to “fit in” with the crowd.

you to smoke. However, indirect peer pressure is unspoken, because nobody is trying to get you to change. Instead, you change on your own because you want to fit in with your friends. And that is a totally understandable reaction. That said, it is a shame that so many people do such a good job resisting the verbal peer pressure of their friends, only to give into pressure from themselves. That’s because any friend, if they are truly worth your time, won’t care whether or not you smoke or vape with them. They will still hang out with you and care about you. Some might even respond to your positive peer pressure and stop smoking or vaping, because they see that you do so well without having to resort to these unhealthy practices.

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Peer Pressure to Smoke or Vape: Finding the Strength in You

Unfortunately, many teens may not have the patience or personal strength to resist indirect peer pressure. The desire to fit in with your friends can be so strong that it is hard not to pressure yourself to conform to their actions. But you don’t have to give into that kind of personal pressure if you believe in yourself and have the confidence to avoid that kind of behavior. Sometimes, Just Saying No Doesn’t Work You’ve probably heard the phrase a thousand times in your life: “Just say no!” Anti-drug campaigns have used that idea to help make sobriety easier to handle. All you have to do is say no, and you won’t have to worry about peer pressure. This message has a good spirit and is generally a good idea, but isn’t quite complex enough. Unfortunately, sometimes saying no just isn’t enough. For example, let’s say that you tell your best friend that you don’t want to smoke the first time she offers you a cigarette. The next time you hang out, she offers again. You say no, and she teases you. Suppose this cycle becomes worse and worse until the two of you have a little fistfight. To apologize for the fight, you agree to smoke a cigarette—and you thus normalize that behavior. “Normalizing” refers to the process of accepting something that was not normal and making it normal. For example, many people have normalized school shootings and have accepted them as inevitable or as things that happen from time to time. Less than fifteen years ago, that attitude was impossible to imagine. Though less extreme, smoking your first cigarette is a way of normalizing bad behavior. Even if you don’t start smoking after that first cigarette, you’ve had a taste of nicotine. You’ve coughed on the smoke and realized that you’re still the same person you were before you smoked. That perception is accurate—you don’t suddenly become an unhealthy

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The Nature of Peer Pressure

person or a bad influence just because you smoke. But that normalization is what can make indirect peer pressure so hard to combat. So, while it is true to say that you don’t change in a meaningful way when you try a cigarette, something does change inside of you. You learn what it is like to smoke a cigarette or vape. Maybe you’ll turn your back on it and never do it again. Many people your age try out a cigarette or only smoke very briefly before they quit and never pick up another cigarette again. But don’t forget that peer pressure can influence the way you dress, the way you behave, your body image, and even your future. Giving in to it opens you up for major changes in who you are as a person—changes that you might not be ready to deal with yet. Sadly, peer pressure may cause you to damage yourself in ways that you may find hard to accept.

For an example of peer pressure, scan here.

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Peer Pressure to Smoke or Vape: Finding the Strength in You