MUSC helps teens kick the habit
Smoking cessation study focuses on high school students
By Jill Coley
The Post and Courier
"The car makes me smoke," says Brittany Ray finishing a cigarette after arriving at her Mt. Pleasant home. Ray is one of six teenagers from Wando High School that are participating in an MUSC smoking cessation program.
Smoking cessation study focuses on high school students
To participate
Enrollment is ongoing for the MUSC adolescent smoking cessation study. Participants younger than age 18 need parental or guardian consent. To learn more about eligibility, call 792-2388.
Smoking statistics
--One-third of all smokers had their first cigarette by age 14.
--90 percent of all smokers begin before the age of 21.
--Each day, 6,000 children younger than 18 smoke their first cigarette.
--6.4 million smokers who started as children eventually will die prematurely from smoking-related disease.
Brittany Ray started smoking when she was 13, a habit she effortlessly picked up from older friends. "I didn't cough. It didn't make me sick," she said.
Five years later, the Wando High School senior wants to toss her Newport 100's, but she finds herself at the mercy of nicotine — a drug some researchers believe is as addictive as heroin.
Through the high school, Ray enrolled in an adolescent smoking cessation study sponsored by Medical University of South Carolina. The 14-week study, funded by the National Institutes of Health, is part of a multi-year trial on the use of the prescription Zyban and behavior therapy to help teenagers quit smoking.
Currently, no medication to help quit smoking is approved for teenagers, said Dr. Himanshu Upadhyaya, an MUSC psychiatry professor and principal investigator.
Yet adolescence is a pivotal period for smokers: 90 percent take their first puff before age 21. Cigarette use among South Carolina high school students is declining, as is the rate nationally among adolescents.
About 74 percent of teenagers in the state reported taking at least one drag in 1991, according to the National Youth Risk Behavior Survey conducted by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. That percentage dropped to 63 percent by 2005, the most recent data available.
But the downward trend seems to have plateaued, with little change in survey results after 2003.
Ray sat across from Upadhyaya in a school administrator's office and answered a litany of questions on possible side effects: Do you have a sore throat? Dry mouth? Heartburn?
The teenager answered quickly, "No. No. No."
She had doubts about the lumpy, green pills, coated to prevent identification. "I'm guessing 'placebo' because, in my mind, it hasn't changed anything at all," she said after a week of taking the pills.
Bupropion hydrochloride, which is sold as Zyban, was first used to treat depression. When those taking the medicine found quitting smoking easier, researchers took note. The Food and Drug Administration approved the drug in 1997 to help adults quit.
Ray is one of six Wando students enrolled in the study this fall. Researchers are starting up at West Ashley High School, too, and are seeing youths on an ongoing basis at MUSC. The study will include 216 adolescents.
But getting face time with busy administrators can be hard, Upadhyaya said. Wando Principal Lucy Beckham said that she jumped at the chance to give students a chance to break a habit that only gets harder to kick. "We want our students to make good choices," she said.
The study is double-blind, so neither Upadhyaya nor Ray know whether Ray is receiving Zyban or a placebo. She does know that she's part of the behavior therapy group and will receive increasing monetary rewards for continuously not smoking. Researchers will test urine samples for cotinine, a metabolic by-product of nicotine, to make sure students have quit.
Teenagers know smoking is bad for you, Upadhyaya said, but they see the health effects as an adult problem. Short-term effects of smoking include reduced lung function, higher resting heart rates and early signs of heart disease.
Tobacco addiction also can indicate a nexus of psychiatric issues. An October report by Columbia University's National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse found that teen smokers are twice as likely as their nonsmoking peers to suffer symptoms of depression.
The Columbia study also reported that 12- to 17-year-olds who smoke are more than five times likelier to drink and 13 times likelier to use marijuana.
The paradigm of tobacco as a "gateway drug" is shifting, however. Scientists are more likely to describe those who are addicted to any drug as having a "common vulnerability," Upadhyaya said. Some go straight to marijuana, he said.
The two most common reasons teens tell Upadhyaya they smoke is to calm down and to relax. "It's stressful in high school," he said.
Ray feels the pressure of getting into college, where she hopes to study graphic design, and of looking for an apartment. But her favorite release valve is about to be snuffed.
"I want to quit either way, if it's the placebo or the medicine," she said.
Reach Jill Coley at 937-5719 or jcoley@postandcourier.com.
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Comments
devilsadvocate77 (anonymous) says...
Like there is not enough evidence out there to prove that smoking is bad...and people STILL insist on doing. There are 21 known carcinogens in cigarette smoke. Now this young girl has here typical white trash excuse that the 'car' makes her do it. In years ahead when she is loaded with cancer and asking 'why me?', remind her how at least she did not cough.
November 5, 2007 at 8:31 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
devster (anonymous) says...
I don't even understand what is meant by "The car makes me smoke".
The stress of having it? Paying for it? Maintaining it?
November 5, 2007 at 8:43 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
afternoondelight (anonymous) says...
There's nothing more beautiful than seeing a young woman with smoke coming from her nostrils while she's driving her car.
November 5, 2007 at 9:05 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
MtP (anonymous) says...
I understand what she means by "The car makes me smoke" It is the first thing that you do when you get in your car and it is hard to break that habit.
devster - It is hard to understand when you don't smoke.
I smoked for about 10 years. I tried to quit a million times and never did. I am now smoke free and feel so much better. It is hard to quit but well worth!
November 5, 2007 at 9:07 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
MtP (anonymous) says...
Oh and CONGRATS TO BRITTANY FOR MAKING MAKING THE DECISON NOW TO QUIT! I wish her the best of luck.
November 5, 2007 at 9:08 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
chasresident (anonymous) says...
I don't understand the negativity being brought towards this young girl who is attempting to make a change and better herself. It is unnecessary to bad mouth and name call the innocent girl "white trash". The main point of the article was to stress that she was making a change and making an effort to quit.
"The car makes me smoke"... she is refering to smoking while in her car. People with addictions, such as food, alcohol associate places or actions with an addiction. She smokes in the car. Some people eat in front of the TV.
November 5, 2007 at 9:09 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
eyfigueroa (anonymous) says...
at least she is trying which is a heck of a lot more than people twice her age.
November 5, 2007 at 9:34 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
devilsadvocate77 (anonymous) says...
And one more thing. The SC underage smoking law went into effect Aug. 21, 2006. Now I don't know this girl's birthdate but I think there was a good chance she was obtaining cigarettes illegally since 2006 until her 18th birthday came along.
November 5, 2007 at 9:36 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
cw (anonymous) says...
Don't listen to the negative remarks, Brittany. You have made a great decision to quit. The "devils advocate" sounds like a reformed smoker to me...they are always the most critical. You go girl!!!!!
November 5, 2007 at 9:43 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
devster (anonymous) says...
After I thought about (ok, and asked a previous smoker who said she immediately knew what it meant) of course it made sense. It's the association. Smoking is something that you can do all day long, unlike drinking or other habit forming behaviors. With smoking, you can associate just about any event with it.
I think the choice of wording was poor, but then again it was a quote.
Oh, and congratulations - if she can quit at 18 she will be so much better off!
November 5, 2007 at 9:55 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
devilsadvocate77 (anonymous) says...
Never smoked, never will. I was smart enough even at 13 to realize that putting smoke in your body can't be good for you!
November 5, 2007 at 10:56 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
blondjes (anonymous) says...
omg! my parents would have KILLED me if they even thought i was smoking as a teenager, and they were smokers for like 30 years!
November 5, 2007 at 11:33 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
anniechacha (anonymous) says...
Calling this young lady "white trash" is uncalled for. How immature can one be to even state such a thing especially if you don't even know her! How dare anyone judge her because of a bad choice she made. At least she is trying to get help. I know many non-smokers who have made bad choices, are they "white trash" too?
As for the "smoking law" cut me a break. How many people don't wear seat belts? How many people drive over 35 mph on Coleman Blvd.? How many people run red lights to take that turn?
Our young people need postive advice/comments with no negativity- no wonder why young people are afraid to speak to adults. Some people who have posted here are so negative and judgemental. Makes me wonder if they have underlining issues or maybe they are the "white trash" they are referring too.
Annie
November 5, 2007 at 12:09 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
Girleygirl (anonymous) says...
Good luck Britney
November 5, 2007 at 12:10 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
BrittanyRay (anonymous) says...
Hello Everyone! Thank you to the ones that have showed nothing but support on this article. This was important to me because I felt that the younger generation could learn from me in never starting such a bad habit.
There were a few questions that I saw on the comments.
Devster- What I ment by "the car makes me smoke" is that when you are a smoker *(most of them can agree with me) the car is something that triggers you wanting a cig. Next time you drive through Mt. Pleasant if you watch the cars next to you, you will see several people smoking.
Devilsadvocate- I am aware that the smoking law went into effect over the summer. When you have an addiction, as I do, there arent many things that will stop you from smoking. You have to want to stop such a habit, not expect a law to make you wake up one day and just not want one.
Some of the comments that I have seen on this article I feel are uncalled for. I did not agree to do this article to be judged but to let people know about the study that MUSC is conducting. I felt that this Drug could help alot of the younger generation stop smoking or just not start in the beginning. Peer pressure today is a probelm rather people want to see it or not. I smoke and fell into this at a younge age. This article was written to open awareness to people and to show that there is help out there. For anyone to call me "white trash" because of a habit I have is uncalled for and rude. I did make a mistake and am trying to change that at a young age so I will be able to live a long healthy life and I am sorry for anyone who cant see past my age or there incorrect opinions.
If anyone has any questions for me, my email is BrittanyRayMusic@hotmail.com
Once again thank you all for your kind words of encouragement and support.
Brittany Ray :-)
November 5, 2007 at 3:21 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
SummerGirl (anonymous) says...
You go, Brittany. One day at a time.
November 5, 2007 at 3:29 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
RTC (anonymous) says...
Good for you, Brittany.
I think that you show a lot of courage just to allow the P&C an interview. You are setting a great example for your peers.
I am also proud to know that you are a Wando student and show that you can write, use proper grammar, and spell correctly.
Don't get discouraged, because you are doing the right thing, as it gets much harder the longer one continues to smoke.
By quitting now you are saving yourself much pain down the road. Keep it up.
November 5, 2007 at 4:03 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
juniemoon1957 (anonymous) says...
AMEN. GO BRITTANY GO. You can do it and you know you can. I am a registered nurse and frequently see the effects of smoking it has on the elder genertaion. I worked in ICU just about my entire career. Even when on venitlators, with thier hands restrained and sedated, die hard smokers will attempt to smoke anything they can get their hands on. I had one gentleman in ICU (military hospital) who would attempt to smoke his pulse oximeter. It is a tool that we clip on the end of thier finger to measure the saturation of oxygen in the blood. It has a red light at the end. He would struggle and struggle to get that red light to his lips. When we figured out what he was doing we would un-restrain his hands and let him "smoke". He was much happier afterwards. This poor fellow was in his 80's, life long military, no family. After his "smoke" we would re-restrain his hands so he could not pull out (extubate) his breathing tube. It was so sad watching him but, I did not have the heart to not let him "smoke". He lived to "smoke". When extubated would constantly ask to smoke. After his stint in ICU when he was moved to another floor, he would frequently be seen at the entrance of the hospital smoking with the other patients there. All huddled in a little group acting like they were sneaking. More or less, a very bad habit, and a his way of socializing with others. SO BRITTANY, you keep trying girl. I wish you much success. One more thing, about those name callers. It is a poor reflection on thier character, NOT YOURS. Don't stoop to thier level. Stay strong. Do the right thing. I am rooting for you.
November 5, 2007 at 5:02 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
My_50Cents_Worth (anonymous) says...
Anniechacha, well said!
BrittanyRay, I wish you well in your efforts to quit smoking.
November 6, 2007 at 3:50 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
mrsmarklin (anonymous) says...
Hey Brittany!! I am so proud to see you trying so hard. I probably started smoking when I was 12 or 13 off and on. I TOTALLY understand the feeling of wanting a cig when I was in the car. Even now that I don't smoke, I occasionally want one especially on long trips. It gives you something to do. I hope that all these young people take a cue from you to not start or quit if they already have. Those people who have left rude comments need to take a look at themselves. Jesus said, "Let he who is without sin cast the first stone." I know there is not a single person in this world who can honestly say they have never sinned so they need to drop their stones. I wish you the best of luck.
November 13, 2007 at 10:57 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
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