Snuffing Out Youth Smoking.

AuthorMontes, Javier

ATTITUDES AND POLICIES toward tobacco use have changed in recent years, as people have become more aware of smoking-related health risks. In the United States, smoking is prohibited on airplanes and in many other public places, and courtroom dockets are overflowing with lawsuits against big tobacco companies. Even the country of Guatemala is suing a U.S. tobacco firm for rising health-care costs.

Yet people continue to light up--including children and teenagers. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), three-fourths of Latin American smokers pick up the habit between the ages of fourteen and seventeen, with smoking most prevalent among urban youth.

The OAS participated in a widely publicized conference on the problem earlier this year. Lawmakers, technical experts, and other participants from more than thirty countries around the world gathered...

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