Teenage Smoking in Saudi - Essay Example

?Saudi Public Opinion: Teen Smoking Introduction Often, there is great focus on health issues in the society. Governments and other stakeholders are under tremendous pressure to ensure the wellbeing of their citizens, with greater emphasis on children’s welfare issues. Children, as is widely known, are what constitute the future generation and taking appropriate measures to improve on their health is equivalent to insuring the future. One of the areas that have attracted a lot of concern is teen smoking in Saudi Arabia, given its harmful effects, such as lung cancer. This paper sets out to examine this vice, paying special attention to the role of the family and the community around teen smokers. In addition, the paper will outline a few strategies of intervention and the welfare structures put in place for this. Family and Community Saudi Arabia has been ranked third in the world when it comes to teen smoking (World Health Organization, 1998). This has been attributed to a variety of factors, with special emphasis on the functioning of the family and the community of which the teen is a part. First, most of the teenage smokers attribute their habits to instability in the family. A study conducted by Jarallah et al. (1999) revealed that a high percentage of children that take up smoking in their early teenage years originated from families where the parents neglected them. Nohair (2011) backs these findings by pointing out that families in which the parents were away, in prison, for example had a high incidence of smoking teenagers. Another role that parents had to play in their teenagers taking up smoking is being drug abusers themselves (Wang, Fitzhugh &Turner, 1997). Teenagers with smoking and drinking parents were most likely to take up the same behavior in their early teenage years. Apart from volatility in the family, there are other factors that contribute to teen smoking in Saudi. Some of the common reasons outlined included peer pressure, where teens smoke to mimic their peers or to gain acceptance into a certain circle (Memon, et al, 2000& Al-arifi, 2005). There were also other factors like personal interest in the habit and the attractive smells of some of the substances such as shisha. A study conducted by Nohair (2011) found that many teenagers that had smoking teachers took up the habit. In his interviews, most of teenagers admit to gaining interest in smoking after witnessing a teacher smoking, due to the notion among children that teachers are perfect examples. In summary, teenage smoking in Saudi is highly a factor of the tendencies of parents, teachers and peers. Intervening to promote well-being There is need for intervention in the smoking trends in Saudi Arabia. Teenage smoking in the region is a rising trend (WHO, 1998) and as such, it cannot be expected to rectify itself in the long run. As pertains to the family, there are numerous potential interventions that can be adopted to reduce the prevalence of teenage smoking. Commencing from the roots, there is consensus that relevant authorities should reach out to parents and educate them on the importance of forming strong bonds with their children (Glanz et al., 2007). In addition, American Psychiatric Association (2006) recommends that parents be taught how to detect drug-abusing tendencies in their children. Authors have also suggested media campaigns aimed at highlighting the folly in smoking (Hong et al., 2008). Hong (2008) maintains that the media remains the most effective means of reaching a high number of teenagers at a go. Children tend to respond positively to explicit media messages that discourage them from abusing drugs (Eaton et al., 2006). Another suggested intervention is the incorporation of teachers and other responsible adults into discouraging smoking. Alluding to the findings of Nohair (2011) on the high correlation between teacher smoking and teen smoking, Summerlein and Goldstein (2008) insist on beginning by educating teachers on the disadvantages of smoking, especially in a school setting. Johnson et al. (2009) vehemently back this where there is a suggestion on the use of teacher workshops to train teachers on how to find teenagers that are abusing cigarettes and other drugs and curb a further spread in the use of these substances. Family and Welfare Structures The effort to reduce the incidence of smoking teenagers in Saudi Arabia is one that has gained priority overtime. Gradually, there are numerous welfare facilities for smoking teenagers and their families to find a means to be rehabilitated from this harmful habit. Some of the welfare structures put in place for this purpose includerehabilitation centers for teenage smokers, andteen-counseling clusters. Studies show that different teenagers respond to the intervention attempts differently (Maziak, Ward&Eissenberg, 2007). For example, some of the teenagers were found to be more receptive than others. One thing that was noted however, was the tendency of teenagers that had the backing of their family to respond better to these welfare structures (Peterson et al., 2000). The welfare structures have been availed widely for easy access by affected parties. Families of affected teenagers can make use of these by pointing them in the right direction; towards a place where they can access treatment (American Psychiatric Association, 2006). Considering that many teenagers take up smoking as a side effect on family instability, their parents can also consider getting counseling on the issues that are creating the volatility at home, alongside their smoking teenagers (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2011). In short, welfare structures work best in the case of involvement by the families of smokers. Conclusion The paper has looked into the issue of teen smokers in Saudi, pinpointing some of the triggers for this habit in the affected children. In addition, the paper discusses the part of the family and community in the lives of smoking teenagers, and how they can be involved in helping the teenagers find release from smoking that is detrimental to their health. Smoking among teenagers is rampant, but with the intervention of the relevant authorities can be curbed, in order to ensure a healthy generation in the future. References Al-Arifi, M.N., 2005. Smoking Habits among Pharmacy Students at a University in Central Saudi Arabia. Saudi Medical Journal 26(3), pp. 893-895. American Psychiatric Association, 2006. Practice guidelines for the treatment of patients with substance use disorders. Washington, DC: American Psychiatric Press Inc Bassiony, M.M., 2009. 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