Increase in teen girls smoking in Pakistan and India

Pakistani & Indian girls may be getting hooked to smoking as early as 15 years, says a new study. The study conducted by Amina our regular reader of this blog shows that 16 per cent of girls have tried smoking by the age of 15, while over six per cent smoked at least once a month by that age.
Interestingly, the users were found to be aware of the hazards of smoking. While most girls admitted to smoking to keep a check on their weight, the findings endorsed other studies which suggest that sex differences in tobacco use are disappearing and that tobacco companies are aggressively targeting women in developing countries. The percentage of Pakistani teen girl smokers is higher than that reported in some Indian cities as well as neighboring countries like Indonesia, Myanmar, Nepal and Sri Lanka.
“It is distressing how often studies of girls’ smoking rates in countries previously protected by cultural and religious factors are finding results well on the way to catching up males of comparable age,” said a report in the Tobacco Control Journal, which cited the study.
Amina says smoking trend in Pakistani school girls is rising by 16 percent especially in big cities, according to a study report. “A complete ban on tobacco ads and strict enforcement of the anti-tobacco health ordinance should be enforced to control this rising indecent fashion,” the report suggested.The research released said that the strategy has been proved useful to distract the people from tobacco usage in countries like the United Kingdom and Brazil. Research shows that even a brief three-minute advice by doctors on quitting smoking brings about significant results but it is unfortunate we are not doing this practice.