Study: Exposure to second-hand smoke may lead teens to cigarettes

By Staff Writer

Past research has proved that second-hand cigarette smoke can impact people's physical health. However, new research indicates that it can also affect one's brain, causing a non-smoker to have nicotine cravings.

According to the report, which appears in the journal Archives of General Psychiatry, exposure to second-hand smoke prompts individuals to become vulnerable to nicotine addiction. Thus, parents should monitor their children to make sure that they are not frequently around other people who use tobacco.

The study, which was funded by the National Institute on Drug Abuse, is based on the results of positron emission tomography (PET) tests on people who were exposed to one hour of second-hand smoke. PET is a process in which researchers use a camera to examine the brain.

According to the study's authors, the tests revealed that second-hand smoke delivers enough nicotine levels to the brain to make an individual crave the harmful chemicals. Researchers said that these findings should convince lawmakers to ban smoking from all public places.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, exposure to second-hand smoke contributes to nearly 50,000 deaths per year.

Teens who smoke cigarettes may be able to quit with the help of a summer boot camp.