Majority of young Malaysians are well aware of the health hazards of smoking, but few would actually take them seriously.
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A survey conducted by National Cancer Society Malaysia (NCSM) on 143 students aged between 13 and 17 from four schools finds that 85% of students know that tobacco could lead to lung cancer while 95% know smoking is harmful to health.
However, 70% of students say they started smoking when they were 12 to 15 years old.
NCSM president Dr Saunthari Somasundaram told Sin Chew Daily they had organized the campaign to help school students quit smoking.
“From there we can learn more about these youngsters’ knowledge, attitude and behavior towards smoking. Alarmingly they are well aware of the various health hazards in relation to smoking, but they do not have the right ‘opportunity’ to quit.
“We will provide counseling services three months before the event. If they have stopped smoking during the past three months, this shows they have successfully quit smoking.”
Unfortunately, she said, many parents did not support their children to join the event for fear their smoker identity would be exposed.
According to The Tobacco Atlas published by the American Cancer Society in 2013, 19% of Malaysian teenagers smoked every day, including 17.1% of men and 1.9% of women.
May 31 is World No Tobacco Day. The theme for this year is: Tobacco, a threat to development.