'Cool' kids most likely to be smokers - Study.

A new study shows that the most popular kids in school are also the most likely to be smoking.

"Popularity is a strong predictor of smoking," study author Thomas Valente, professor of preventive medicine at the University of Southern California's Keck School of Medicine, told HealthDay. "We haven't done enough to make it cool not to smoke."

Researchers found that the popular kids were more likely to start smoking earlier than those who were less popular. Students who became smokers were more likely to be friends with other smokers, and those who thought their friends were smoking were more likely to smoke, even if that assumption was wrong.

"Adolescence is a time when students turn to others to figure out what is important. These are four different samples, now, coming from different places -- and the finding is consistent."

Source.

Chicks dig smokers!

I never smoked, but everyone always thought I did for some reason.

Hmmmm

Wonder if its the aesthetics of smoking(burning wick of fire hanging out of your mouth)

Or the calming effects of nicotine(they're relaxed and more sociable) that cause this.

Either way they are idiots to pick up an expensive, nauseating, addictive, and unhealthy hobby to be more 'hip' in school.

Not that hard to believe.

Hmmmm

Wonder if its the aesthetics of smoking(burning wick of fire hanging out of your mouth)

Or the calming effects of nicotine(they're relaxed and more sociable) that cause this.

Either way they are idiots to pick up an expensive, nauseating, addictive, and unhealthy hobby to be more 'hip' in school.

dercoo

Agreed.

None of the "popular" kids at my old school smoked. Drinking and illegal drugs were what the "popular" kids did.

Basically, I knew high-school students that had DWIs, DUIs, and DIED due to overdoses.

the smokers at my highschool were sorta outcasts; they didn't really hang out with anyone but people who smoked. the popular kids at my school drank

It was kinda true at my HS I saw two kids who were both "losers" before HS. One started smoking in grade 9 and became popular the other kid started in grade 11 and also became popular.

I should also state that there were other kids who were "cool" by being in sports and school council. So if you get involved in extra curcicular activites you'll make "cool" friends rather than playing only video games and have friends that only play video games. I was the latter and I regretted it but that changed when I went to uni. Plus you'll likely get laid in HS.

Hmm. Regardless of popularity, it seems pretty dumb to start destroying your health at that early of an age via smoking.

"We haven't done enough to make it cool not to smoke."loco145

smoking is anything BUT cool

Glad they did a study on this. Really opens the eyes.

I'm going to guess being mexican schools skewed the results.

Well it's obvious that smoking made them cool. I'm going to start smoking.

Well it's obvious that smoking made them cool. I'm going to start smoking.

Wasdie

So "popular" kids are sheep?LJS9502_basic

So "popular" kids are sheep?LJS9502_basic

Everyone's a sheep nowadays. No matter what you do in life, you're conforming to someone or something.

[QUOTE="LJS9502_basic"]So "popular" kids are sheep?TheFatPerson

Everyone's a sheep nowadays. No matter what you do in life, you're conforming to someone or something.

I find it to be quite the opposite.

Meh I never smoked and I was the coolest kid in school :lol:

Nah but I'd agree with the study, the kids with the most friends tend to be the ones who smoke up a lot (Tobacco, Marijuana) and party constantly. Luckily I never had that social pressure put on me as I left highschool in grade 10 to continue it through correspondents online. Though I don't think I would have ever fallen to smoking as even by grade 10 most of my friends were trying to pressure me into skipping class and going to smoke Marijuna with them and while I skipped classes I never smoked with them.

Now at 19 I don't smoke or drink. I don't like smoking as my grandfather (the biggest inspiration in my life and a huge father figure to me) died because of getting cancer from it and he made me promise before he died to never get into drugs and smoking, which is a promise I am going to keep. Not to mention in general many people in my family have died from it, which is probably a sign that I just don't have the genetics to smoke while not dying from Cancer or something like that (I'm not a scientist but I know there are people out there who smoke heavily and live into their 80's) As for drinking I just don't like the way it makes me feel or act and the after effects of it.

lol Popularity.

[QUOTE="loco145"]"We haven't done enough to make it cool not to smoke."MrGeezer

That's not true. Making not smoking 'cool' is merely a means of preventing smoking, not an end goal.

Man, I wish I knew that earlier when I was still in high school.

There is no real evidence to suggest this. It's just one of the many pointless studies.

There is no real evidence to suggest this. It's just one of the many pointless studies.

ShadowMoses900