http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070625/ap_on_he_me/hurricanes_teen_smoking;_ylt=Ah8PwP38oEkJFiYc2emMOpAE1vAIStudy links hurricanes to teen smokers Mon Jun 25, 5:07 PM ET
BEAUMONT, Texas -
Teenagers in a southeast Texas county were more likely to smoke cigarettes if they or their family members were affected by Hurricanes Katrina or Rita, according to a university study.
The study by the University of Texas Health Science Center in Houston surveyed more than 5,100 middle school and high school students in Jefferson County six to nine months after the hurricanes made landfall.
"The physical damage was easy to see, but the psychological damage from the hurricanes was pretty well hidden," said Alfred L. McAlister, a behavioral scientist and an author of the study. "The hurricanes had an emotional impact on the youth and we need to recognize that and give them the help they need. Otherwise, they use tobacco as a crutch and then they become addicted."
Almost 38 percent of students who reported they had a family member hurt or killed in the 2005 hurricanes also reported that they now were smoking, according to the study. In comparison, 13 percent who did not endure a death or injury in the family said they smoked
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