1. TRUE or FALSE? The majority of Canadian teens don't smoke.
THE CORRECT ANSWER IS TRUE
In 2003, 79% Canadian teens aged 15-19 reported to never have smoked, an additional 3% said that they had quit for good, and only 18% indicated that they were smokers.
SOURCE: Canadian Tobacco Use Monitoring Survey (CTUMS) 2003
2. What is the average age at which Canadian youth try smoking for the first time?
a) 10.4 years old
b) 12.8 years old
c) 13.5 years old
d) 14.6 years old
THE CORRECT ANSWER IS b)
On average, young Canadians first try a cigarette when they are 12.8 years old.
SOURCE: Canadian
Lung Association
3 . TRUE or FALSE? More than a third of students who try smoking become smokers.
THE CORRECT ANSWER IS TRUE
Among students who had ever tried cigarette smoking, 36% went on to smoke daily.
SOURCE: Centre for Disease Control and Prevention, 1997
4 . TRUE or FALSE? If you limit smoking to a few puffs a week it doesn't do you any harm.
THE CORRECT ANSWER IS FALSE
Even a few puffs a week is enough to increase carbon monoxide levels in your blood and affect various tissues in your body - there is no safe level of smoking.
SOURCE: Blitstein et al. (2003)
5 . On average, how much longer will non-smokers live?
a) one year
b) three years
c) eight years
d) ten years
THE CORRECT ANSWER IS c)
The average smoker will die about 8 years earlier than a similar non-smoker. Life expectancy improves after a smoker quits.
SOURCE: Health Canada, Go Smoke Free
6. 95% of high school students believe they will quit after high school. How many are still smoking five years after graduation?
a) one quarter
b) half
c) two-thirds
d) three-quarters
THE CORRECT ANSWER IS d)
In this study, only 5% of high school students believed that they would continue smoking after high school. When surveyed again 7 years later, almost 75% were still smokers.
SOURCE: Trends
in Tobacco Use Among Youth, CDC, March 1994
7. TRUE or FALSE?More teen boys smoke than teen girls.
THE CORRECT ANSWER IS FALSE
The rate of teens aged 15-19 smoking in 2003 was 18%: 20% females and 17% males.
SOURCE: CTUMS, 2003
8. TRUE or FALSE? Teens are more likely to try quitting than adults.
THE CORRECT ANSWER IS TRUE
92% of teens 15-17 had tried to quit one time or more in the past year and 84% of the 18-19 year olds, compared to 67% of adults 25+.
SOURCE: CTUMS, 2003.
9. TRUE or FALSE? Studies prove that smoking can help you lose weight.
THE CORRECT ANSWER IS FALSE
Smoking does not lead to a healthy weight. Research conducted at the University of Memphis (USA) with 4000 young people (18-30 years old) showed that smokers gained as much weight as non-smokers in the same age range.
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