Call your local health department or your cancer, heart, or lung association to learn how you can get involved. Nicotine in cigarettes, cigars, and spit tobacco is addictive. Nicotine narrows your blood vessels and puts added strain on your heart. Smoking can wreck lungs and reduce oxygen available for muscles used during sports. Smokers run slower and can't run as far, affecting overall athletic performance.
Tobacco smoke can make hair and clothes stink.
Tobacco stains teeth and causes bad breath. Sean Marcee, a high school star athlete who used spit tobacco, died of oral cancer when he was 19 years old. Spend it on CD's, clothes, computer games, and movies. Help them to avoid the mistake you made when you first starting smoking. Talk openly and frankly about smoking and its effects.