Adolescents don’t see addiction signs
Children who begin smoking do not recognize that being irritable is an early sign of addiction, University of Massachusetts researchers said.
“Previous studies have already shown that there is a strong correlation between symptoms of nicotine dependence and nicotine addiction,” Dr. Chyke Doubeni said in a statement. “This study shows that adolescents who start smoking, don’t appear to recognize the early signs of dependence.”
Doubeni said other signs of early dependence on nicotine include a desire to smoke or craving for a cigarette.
The study is based on data from surveys of adolescent smokers every three to four months from 2002-2006.
The study, published in the journal Pediatrics, found non-daily use of tobacco can trigger any early signs of dependence, which in turn, increased smoking.
The study also found during the 4-year study, of the 370 subjects who had inhaled cigarette smoke, 62 percent smoked at least once per month, 52 percent experienced dependence symptoms and 40 percent became daily smokers.
(Source: UPI)
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