Figures from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention state that each day, around 1,000 US teenagers under the age of 18 become daily cigarette smokers. Now, new research estimates that almost 600 children under the age of 16 begin smoking every day in the UK. This is according to a study published in the journal Thorax.
There is no question that smoking can cause many health problems at any age. But taking up smoking at a younger age can pose even greater risks to health, compared with starting later in life, according to the researchers of this most recent study.
They note that smoking at a younger age can affect lung development and increase the risk of progressive lung disease. Those who take up smoking under the age of 15 also have an increased risk of developing lung cancer, they add.
From this knowledge, the investigators looked to estimate the number of children taking up smoking in the UK each day, in order to boost strategies for preventive measures against the habit.
The study was a collaboration between researchers from the NIHR Respiratory Biomedical Research Unit at Royal Brompton and Harefield NHS Foundation Trust, Imperial College London, Cancer Research UK and Action on Smoking and Health in the UK.
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