Recent findings have shown that overweight teens are more likely to smoke than their normal- weight counterparts, according to the publication Science World Report.
"Young people smoke cigarettes for a variety of reasons. For overweight or obese adolescents, the increased desire to improve social standing or fit in with others may also increase the probability of engaging in regular cigarette smoking," said lead author H. Isabella Lanza, Ph.D., research associate with the UCLA Integrated Substance Abuse Programs, via Medical Xpress.
Lanza added, "I think we will see this play out even more in the public arena with a new generation of youth being persuaded to try e-cigarettes and other forms of 'healthier' nicotine products in order to advance their social standing."
As research, data gathered by the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health that collected information on teens' mental and physical health as well as their drug use in 1995, 1996 and 2001 was analyzed. The data reportedly showed that young adults and teens with a higher body mass index, or BMI, were more likely to pick up smoking.
"I think we will see this play out even more in the public arena with a new generation of youth being persuaded to try e-cigarettes and other forms of 'healthier' nicotine products in order to advance their social standing," Landa stated, according to News Medical.
The emergence of e-cigarettes is reportedly quite dangerous, as the World Health Organization recently released that electronic cigarettes have not been proven as an effective aid for those trying to quit smoking, according to Today Online.
"ENDS, including e-cigarettes, that claim to be smoking cessation products to help smokers quit tobacco use should demonstrate their safety and effectiveness with the same level of scientific rigor required for approved Nicotine-Replacement Therapies under the Medicines Act," the Ministry of Health said in a statement released August 27.
The WHO report released the day before also stated, "The existing evidence shows that ENDS aerosol is not merely 'water vapour' as is often claimed in the marketing for these products. ENDS use poses serious threats to adolescents and fetuses. In addition, it increases exposure of non-smokers and bystanders to nicotine and a number of toxicants."
