As physicians we can certainly all recite the many medical problems associated with tobacco use from the increased incidence of carcinomas of the lung, head and neck to the increase in stroke and cardiac events. The costs to our society in lost wages and medical care are significant. Still, over the past 10 years, there have been gains in the war against smoking. In many social situations, the smoker is the outcast. More and more restaurants are smoke-free.
Workplaces are smoke-free with designated smoking areas.
Yet if one were to go by any high school at the end of the school day you will see young people by the scores lighting up. As healthcare workers, physicians should be aware of the smoking habits of their patients and should counsel those who smoke to stop. It is not only cigarettes that I am alluding to, but cigar smoking as well. Unfortunately, patients are most encouraged to stop once they have a significant smoking associated disease. The sense of invulnerability and immortality that the young have makes them a particularly difficult group to reach.