[belugagirl]

Adam, I totally agree: for most kids, the threat of eventual horrid death from a related disease means little. What is it going to do to me NOW? That's the question whose answer may keep them away.

You made some good points about immediate and chronic consequences. I've got another that I'm sure would have an impact for most teens: it makes you unattractive to the opposite sex (for a host of reasons, like, how it will make you smell, how your kisses will taste, how it will affect your skin and appearance, and what it says about your level of independence from the crowd).

I remember an anti-smoking education commercial a few years back that did exactly what I had been thinking for a couple years that "someone" should do. It began with a pair of attractive teenagers making subtle, flirty eye contact across a room at a party. She begins walking in his direction with her friend. He takes out a cigarette and lights up. She makes a face of disgust to her friend, and they veer another way.

Yes, tell kids that smoking can make you ill and can kill, but once they're into puberty, also tell them it's a turnoff.