Cigarette dependence. I. Nature and classification.

A teenager need smoke only twice to have a 70 % chance of smoking for the next 40 years if he lives so long. This follows from the facts that only 150% of adolescents who smoke more than one cigarette avoid becoming regular smokersl and that only about 15 % of smokers stop permanently before the age of 60.2 When asked why they smoke many smokers are at a loss for a satisfactory answer. Few can claim they enjoy every cigarette they smoke and there are some who get little positive pleasure. Only after a pause for consideration are reasons for smoking gradually elicited-such as, "Habit I suppose," "It calms my nerves," or "It helps me to concen- trate."