WEDNESDAY, JULY 6, 1983
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+WHEN YOU REMEMBER THAT TOBACCO SMOKING IS A FORM OF DRUG DEPENDENCE DIFFERENT FROM, BUT NO LESS STRONG THAN, THAT OF OTHER ADDICTIVE DRUGS, THE MESSAGE WHICH EMERGES IS CLEAR YOUR CHANCES
OF A HEALTHY AND LONGER LIFE ARE MUCH BETTER IF YOU NEVER START TO SMOKE IN THE FIRST PLACE,+ HE SAID.
TALKING ABOUT THE REASONS WHY PEOPLE START TO SMOKE, MR BARNES SAID THAT A SURVEY CONDUCTED IN 1981 IN HONG KONG INDICATED THAT BY FAR THE MAJORITY PICKED UP THE HABIT EITHER FROM FRIENDS AND FAMILY MEMBERS OR AS A RESULT OF CURIOSITY.
+THE PRESSURE ARE OFTEN PARTICULARLY STRONG ON YOUNG PEOPLE WHO OFTEN WANT TO APPEAR MORE MATURE IN THEIR BEHAVIOUR, OR WHO DO NOT WANT TO SEEM UNADVENTUROUS TO THEIR FRIENDS, OR WHO ARE NATURALLY CURIOUS, HE ADDED,
MR BARNES POINTED OUT THAT THE MAIN DANGER YEARS FOR THIS TYPE OF EXPERIMENTATION SEEMED TO BE BETWEEN THE AGES OF 10 AND 15.
HE WENT ON TO SAY THAT IT WOULD BE WRONG TO TRY TO PUT THE BLAME ENTIRELY ON THE CHILDREN THEMSELVES.
+YOUNG PEOPLE, AFTER ALL, LEARN FROM THE IR ELDERS, AND IN THE MATTER OF SMOKING ARE ALSO SUBJECTED TO INFLUENCES THROUGH MEDIA ADVERTISING, THROUGH THE SPONSORSHIP BY TOBACCO COMPANIES OF SPORTING EVENTS, AND FROM THE EXAMPLES SET BY PUBLIC FIGURES,+ MR BARNES SAID.
→THE INFLUENCE OF PARENTS AND TEACHERS ARE PROBABLY AMONGST THE STRONGEST, AND I WISH TO MAKE A SPECIAL APPEAL TO THEM TO UNDERSTAND HOW IMPORTANT IT IS THAT YOUNG PEOPLE SHOULD NOT PICK UP THE SMOKING HABIT.
+THE GOOD EXAMPLES PARENTS AND TEACHERS CAN SET THEMSELVES WILL NOT ONLY GUIDE CHILDREN ALONG A PATH TO A HEALTHIER AND LONGER LIFE, BUT WILL ALSO ENABLE THEM TO WITHSTAND BETTER THE PRESSURE TO START SMOKING FROM FRIENDS AND CLASSMATES IN SCHOOL.+
HE STRESSED THAT THE AIM MUST BE TO ENSURE THAT THE IMAGE CHILDREN OBTAINED OF SMOKING IS NOT SOMETHING WHICH IS GROWN UP, SOPHISTICATED AND GLAMOROUS, BUT SOMETHING WHICH IS IMITATIVE, UNATTRACTIVE, UNHEALTHY AND UNNECESSARY+.
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+ IF OUR CHILDREN CAN BE TAUGHT HOW TO SAY 'NO' WHEN IT COME S TO SMOKING, THE HONG KONG OF TOMORROW WILL BE A HEALTHIER PLACE ̧- MR BARNES CONCLUDED.
ON DISPLAY AT THE EXHIBITION ARE 40 PRIZE WINNING POSTER DESIGNS AND 36 OTHERS OF MERIT, CHOSEN FROM 1 100 ENTRIES FROM SCHOOLS THROUGHOUT HONG KONG.
COPIES OF THE WINNING DESIGNS HAVE BEEN SENT FOR DISPLAY AT THE FIFTH WORLD CONFERENCE ON SMOKING AND HEALTH TO BE HELD FROM JULY 10 TO 15 IN WINNIPEG, CANADA.
THE EXHIBITION WILL CONTINUE UNTIL 4 PM TOMORROW. IS FREE.
ADMISSION