LGBTIQ Youth: Tobacco
Everyone knows that smoking is bad for you, so why do
people do it?
Most people, regardless of their sexual orientation or
gender identity, start smoking (or chewing or dipping) as
teenagers. Smoking can feel adventurous, and it can make it
feel easier to fit in.
Usually people keep smoking because they're addicted.
For LGBTIQ youth, fitting in can be a precious thing. Lots
of LGBTIQ youth feel isolated and lonely, at least until they
find a group of LGBTIQ-supportive peers. When they do, if
smoking is the ticket to belonging, it may feel like a small
price to pay.
The problem is that the price is high — you just pay
for it
years down the road.
LGBTIQ youth may have grown up believing — even though it
isn't true — that all LGBTIQ people, especially men, will die
of AIDS, anyway. If you don't think you will live long enough
to get lung cancer or heart disease, smoking may not seem like
a big deal.
LGBTIQ youth may also have grown up believing — even though
it isn't true — that their lives are worthless to begin with.
If you don't feel like your life will amount to much, smoking
probably won't seem like much of a risk.
LGBQ youth in Boulder County do have higher rates of
smoking than heterosexual youth. But they’re also more likely
to try to quit smoking!
- 35.7% of Boulder County LGBQ youth are daily
smokers, compared to 10% of heterosexual youth.*
- 55.7% of Boulder County LGBQ youth have tried to
quit smoking in the last year, compared to 50.4% of
heterosexual youth.*
If you’re a Boulder County resident and you’d like a FREE
LGBTIQ QUIT KIT, call (303) 678-6139.
* This information was compiled from the
Boulder County
Youth Risk Behavior Survey.
For more information:
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We'd like to thank Advocates for Youth for allowing us to
use portions of this Q and A text, which were taken from an article written by Advocates for Youth in the
summer of 2004. |
