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- MACOT Supports
Albuquerque's Ordinance To Reduce Illegal Tobacco Sales to Minors
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- General Youth & Tobacco
Information
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- 3,000 children in the
United States begin smoking each day; 1,000 of
them will die a premature death from a tobacco-related disease.
- Approximately 90% of smokers began smoking as teenagers.
- Approximately one-third of teenagers in New Mexico smoke cigarettes
and another 6% use spit tobacco.
- The average teen smoker starts smoking at age 13 and becomes a daily
smoker by age 14.5.
- Tobacco is a gateway drug and studies have shown that children who
are abusing drugs begin by smoking cigarettes. If you want to curb illegal
drug use, a good way is to start with tobacco.
- In Albuquerque, according to compliance checks, minors were able to
purchase cigarettes an average of 27% of the time in 1997-1998.
- Young people underestimate the addictive nature of nicotine. Only 5%
of high school students who smoke daily think they definitely will be smoking
in five years. Almost 75% of them still smoke 5-6 years later.
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- Product Placement Specifics
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- Self-service displays invite
shoplifting of tobacco products; many teens report shoplifting as a means
to obtain tobacco products. Placing tobacco behind the counter reduces
the theft element.
- When a youth must ask for tobacco products, the direct interaction
with the clerk increases the likelihood that the clerk will notice their
age and ask for identification.
- Younger or less confident children may be less likely to attempt to
purchase tobacco if they must request the product from a clerk.
- Placing tobacco products out-of-reach reinforces the message that tobacco
products are not in the same class as candy or potato chips.
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