© UnknownA study shows that the threat of smelling bad may be a motivator to quit smoking.
A new Australian study suggests this embarrassing fact could be used as a potent motivator to quit, even more powerful than gruesome images of tobacco-related disease.
University of Sydney Department of Psychology PhD candidate Emily Kothe brought together 28 current and former smokers to test the effectiveness of the latest anti-smoking advertisements.
While the television ads were shown to reduce cravings and inspire a sense of "disgust" and "worry" in current smokers, worryingly they also reported feeling the images did not relate to them.
"Many smokers did not feel the advertisements were enough to make them quit," Ms Kothe said.
"... the smell associated with being a smoker may have more impact than talking about gangrene."
Ms Kothe said future ad campaigns should highlight consequences of the habit that smokers could immediately relate to.
While the latest advertising campaign had proven effective in discouraging people from taking up smoking, the message was often lost on young smokers (aged 18 to 26) taking part in the trials.
"We received comments such as 'some of the particular diseases the advertisement displays might be a bit far-fetched - gangrene, for example'," Ms Kothe said.
"Others stated 'being young and healthy, I don't think the pictures shown, for example mouth cancer, really relate to me ... we are a long way from these things happening to us'."
The study took in the age group most likely to smoke and who most often underestimated their personal level of risk.
Smokers who watched the ads had a 16 per cent decrease in nicotine cravings, while ex-smokers showed no decline.
Smokers who watched a non-health related video instead of the advertisement experienced a 12 per cent increase in cravings over the same period.
The study is to be presented on Saturday at the Heart Foundation Conference, a three-day event underway on the Gold Coast.
Heart Foundation national chief executive Dr Lyn Roberts said the research added weight to calls for a rise in the tobacco tax.
"Smoking is the leading single preventable cause of ill-health and death in Australia, claiming more than 15,500 lives per year," Dr Roberts said.
"So it is incredibly frustrating to hear yet again that young people are still choosing to smoke."
AAP
My regular supply of American Spirit bulk loose tobacco, sent to me from Oklahoma, just went from $12 per can to over $28. Now that stinks.
In response, my young tobacco plants, sprouted indoors back in February and hardening up on the back deck for the past week will go into the ground in the next couple of days.
This fall my tobacco will cost only the labor it required to grow it. The government just priced themselves out of my budget... and I have learned some new skills.
Take that, nanny state! Ahh, smells like freedom.