MEDIA TO BLAME. The 2007 Global Youth Tobacco Survey of the World Health Organization and the Department of Health reported that one out of five Filipino youths is now smoking. A medical doctor said this is alarming news because of obvious medical reasons. He said, “Bisan naa nay health warnings, dili gyud ni mopatuo ang mga bata. Kay pirmi man sila kakita sa media, sa tv, movies ug newspapers mga tawo mag-smoke. It looks very cool to them, so mo-follow sab sila, not knowing the negative implications sa smoking.”
SCARE TACTIC. A school nurse said she knows of a way to make the youngsters stop smoking. She said merely telling them the negative consequences of smoking will not make these smoking teens stop. She said the best way will be to scare them out of their wits so they won’t want to smoke again. She proposes a health lecture in all schools, and showing them vivid pictures and videos of decayed lungs and patients suffering and dying of lung cancer. She said, “Scare tactic angay aning mga bataa. Kung makakita na sila aning mga shocking pictures and videos of patients suffering from lung cancer and pictures of diseased lungs, mahadlok na sila. Dili na gyud na sila manigarilyo’g balik.”