How do people start smoking?

Introduction

Have you ever wondered why you are a smoker? People start smoking for many reasons. Understanding these reasons might help you in your journey to quitting smoking. When you notice that these reasons come up you can be aware that these are the reasons you want to smoke. You can then step over these reasons and continue towards your goal of being a non-smoker.

Reasons people start smoking

Divorced parents

One explanation of why people start smoking is parental separation. Research has shown that children with divorced parents are far more likely to start a smoking addiction at a young age. Because of this trauma, people develop symptoms of depression which in turn leads to more susceptibility to starting smoking. Another reason is that people that grew up with divorced parents tend to have more rebellious tendencies when reaching adolescence.

Movies

Another explanation of why people start smoking is their favorite movie star. Research had shown that adolescents, that watch movie with their favorite movie star that smokes a far more likely to be a smoker themselves. These factors more heavily with girls. That why a lot of movies these days don’t show a smoking character. Considering that not showing this act is better for public health.

Socioeconomic status

Another reason could be a compromised socioeconomic status. In other words, you might be having trouble making friends. Or the relationships you have with people don’t meet your expectations. For example, you aren't getting enough attention in your relationship or your friends don’t show that they care enough for you. A sad but real factor for why people can start smoking. Sorry if this one bummed you out. Don’t worry about it, there are enough actual nice people in this world.

Social bonding

For some people bonding with their family isn’t a straightforward thing. These people might find that they are more likely to have a deep connection with their peers. Unfortunately, this is another reason why a lot of people start smoking. You want to fit in with people and feel vulnerable because of the bond you miss with your parents. So you go along with your peers and have a smoke to fit in. It makes perfect sense when you think about, but later you realize that if they don’t accept you for not smoking they wouldn't have been worth it anyway.

Refusal skills self-efficacy

Another reason why people start smoking is that some people might lack a sense of self-efficacy. You can also describe this phenomenon in the sense that you get when you complete something you set out to do. People that feel like they can not reach the goal the set out to do will also find it a lot harder to quit smoking. Therefore it’s very important to build your confidence to help you quit.

Self-esteem

Although it’s important to build your self-esteem, it can also be the reason people start smoking in the first place. Research has shown that most smokers show indications of good self-esteem. This in part because of the increased amount of social contacts. The number of social contacts will simply increase the chance of connecting with people that are smoking. This is where it goes back to peer pressure.

Marketing

This one always baffles me when I read about it. But the marketing of big tobacco companies has been a thing for decades. Governments started to regulate these campaigns when people started realizing that this is a deadly habit. These marketing strategies are extremely effective at targeting teenagers and stimulate the desire for cigarettes. In the Netherlands, this kind of marketing strategy is forbidden and this will probably spread towards more countries.

Nicotine

One of the most important factors of smoking addictions is nicotine of course. Although it might not be the reason people start smoking their first cigarette. It certainly means that it probably won't be their last. Like with any other addictive substance. Nicotine releases dopamine in the brain every time it enters the body. This makes your body feel like it’s physically dependent on the drug to function. Because the brain has learned that smoking a cigarette releases dopamine. The nicotine doesn't make it feel pleasant, the dopamine does. That's why a lot of ex-smokers are fanatic runners. Research has shown that running releases these same dopamine hits to the brain. Giving you the same feeling as smoking a cigarette.

Conclusion

Why people start smoking can have many more factors than the ones described above. And these factors also relate to each other making the likeliness to start smoking even higher. Most people don’t realize the factors could be the reason why they started smoking in the first place. Perhaps knowing some of them will help you notice them before you start smoking again! Good luck to all you quitters out there!

Sources

The influence of parental separation on smoking initiation in adolescents:

https://scholar.google.com/scholar?hl=nl&as_sdt=0%2C5&q=how+do+people+start+smoking&btnG=#d=gs_qabs&u=%23p%3DFetDH0vSMKoJ

Do Favorite Movie Stars Influence Adolescent Smoking Initiation?:

https://ajph.aphapublications.org/doi/abs/10.2105/AJPH.94.7.1239

Why children start smoking cigarettes: predictors of onset:

https://scholar.google.com/scholar?hl=nl&as_sdt=0%2C5&q=how+do+people+start+smoking&btnG=#d=gs_qabs&u=%23p%3Dv_c-HSwAUQQJ

Seeing, wanting, owning: the relationship between receptivity to tobacco marketing and smoking susceptibility in young people:

https://scholar.google.com/scholar?hl=nl&as_sdt=0%2C5&q=how+do+people+start+smoking&btnG=#d=gs_qabs&u=%23p%3DMgUSeNzwFowJ

Why people smoke:

https://scholar.google.com/scholar?start=10&q=how+do+people+start+smoking&hl=nl&as_sdt=0,5#d=gs_qabs&u=%23p%3DiIIf37RarLwJ