Studies show adults can quit smoking now under care of a counselor and physician. But this possibility is next to impossible with teenagers. Pre- teen age is an age in which we want to gain each and every experience whether good or bad. Our habits start forming at this stage like smoking. Most of us take first puff only to boast about it to our friends and later on it becomes a harmful habit. Here are a few tips to help you talk with your child about not smoking:
1. Generally a child learns from the habits of their parents. If you are a smoker then the foremost step needs to be taken by you. Get yourself free from the smoking habit and try to figure out the bad effects of smoking in front of your child. If a child sees their parents using good manners like eating healthy food then they are more likely to follow those good habits. On the contrary if they see their parents smoking, they will see it as acceptable and normal. Only verbal explanation would not help. A “do as I say and Not as I do” attitude will not work. You will need
to quit smoking now.
2. Talk to your kids. You can start with explaining to them the functions of the heart and lungs and how bad habits harm their smooth functioning. 
Insert a mental picture of the outcome. Instead of praising the smoking trend, try to criticize actors who smoke in movies and T.V programs. Make sure you do that in front of your kids.
3. Tell them about the harmful effects that smoking leads to like: it causes high blood pressure, wrinkles up your skin, causes cancer, costs a lot of money. Try to encourage kids more abut good habits by telling them about the benefits of healthy living like healthy skin, active body, physical fitness. Search for images online of people with various cancers and diseases they got because they didn’t quit smoking.
4. Help your child to get involved in the activities in which they are interested. A child should learn to develop an optimist point of view towards life. Encourage them to make good friends and not to get involve in bad company. Appreciate your youngsters on their good deeds and also not forget to scold them on their bad ones. Do not pamper them. Your child should be able to judge between right and wrong so they are able to say no to their bad habits when the trying times come.
5. Remember to be honest and forth coming when sharing information about tobacco and the effects it has on our bodies. Children are smart and want to make the right choice, it is up to us to steer them in the right direction. Only you can truly shape the mind of your child toward making the right decisions in life, and always remember, actions speak louder than words.
I have 3 children living in my home and I spend a lot of time and money trying to teach them the benefits of being honest, hard work, and taking responsibility for your actions. If their is one message I would like to get across through this article is a short and simple saying that I tell my children daily…HANDLE YOUR BUSINESS!!! Their is a right way and a wrong way, the choice is yours, just remember that your choices also affect the lives of your children, handle your business.
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