Movies without cigarettes or how to protect children from bad habits
Last reviewed: 23.04.2024
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WHO recommends that all countries ban the viewing of films in which tobacco products and episodes of smoking are present, children and adolescents, while the ban should be introduced at the legislative level. According to 2009, it is films in which there are scenes of smoking, prompted millions of teenagers to start smoking. Now almost all countries have imposed a restriction on any advertising of all products from tobacco, but films still continue to exert a strong influence on the younger generation. Douglas Bettcher, head of the Department for the Prevention of Infectious Diseases, stressed that only certain actions, including the banning of children and teenagers viewing films containing episodes of smoking and videos that warn about the dangers of smoking, will help to prevent the formation of a harmful habit among young people that can cause disability and of death.
According to one of the studies, almost 40% of American teenagers prompted smoking movies. Experts say that because of this, children can form a heavy dependence on tobacco.
Experts have identified scenes of smoking in almost half of the films released by Hollywood, about 60% were withdrawn from 2002 to 2014. According to the US chief medical officer, if all films that contain episodes of smoking or somehow show tobacco products are banned from being watched by children and adolescents, this will reduce by almost 20% the number of new smokers among young people, thus avoiding a million deaths from for a pernicious habit.
Read also: Smoking: how to quit this bad habit?
It is worth noting that films that were not released in the United States also contain scenes of smoking, while most of these episodes are contained in the highest grossing films produced in the countries of the European Union, as well as in Latin America.
The WHO report mentions that governments should adhere to recommendations that will help limit children from "harmful" films:
- films in which episodes of smoking and tobacco demonstration occur, allow only 21 years
- Indicate in the credits that tobacco products shown in films are not advertising, and such scenes were not paid for by producers
- do not show cigarettes in the movies
- before showing films in cinemas, television, online to launch anti-tobacco advertising
WHO also recommends denying the right to receive state aid for media products advertising tobacco products.
According to the head of the program to get rid of nicotine addiction, many countries have already taken measures to limit smoking scenes, for example, in China it was decided to reduce the number of scenes in which tobacco products are shown in some way or smoking is shown, rules for displaying products from tobacco, as well as cigarette brands, while the rules apply to both domestic and foreign films. However, WHO experts assure that this is only a small fraction of what can actually be done to provide the young generation with a healthy future and freedom from tobacco.
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