Tobacco promotions in the hands of youth

Objective -To examine the extent to which minors in the United States are exposed to and participate in tobacco promotion campaigns. Design -1047 minors (12-17 years old) and 290 young adults (18-24 years old) were interviewed in July and August 1993 as part of a national, random digit dial telephone survey designed to investigate the participation by young people in tobacco promotion campaigns. Results -366 minors surveyed had par ticipated in tobacco promotion cam paigns (35%). Among this group, 111 (10.6% of total respondents) reported having owned at least one tobacco pro motional item. The mean number of items owned by these 111 respondents was 3.2. By applying these figures to the US population in this age group, an estimated 7.4 million minors have participated in tobacco promotion cam paigns, and 2.2 million of these have collectively, owned an estimated seven million tobacco promotional items. Conclusions Despite claims by the tobacco industry that promotional items are intended solely for smokers at least 21 years of age, millions of young people, both smokers and non-smokers, possess and use such items. This popular form of advertising lacks warning labels and familiarises minors with tobacco pro ducts. (Tobacco Control 1995; 4: 253-257)