Case Study(1)

The surveys were followed by awareness campaigns for the groups mainly affected. We started with screening movies and conducting seminars for our friends and other students in the school. At this innocent age, they forget to weigh the pros and cons. They don’t think about the health risks and begin with the belief of just trying it once. But the nicotine is highly addictive and it causes similar cravings in children as in adults. So, it is necessary to sensitize them on this issue. We screened a film “A HEAVY PRICE” – EXPLORING THE HARMFUL EFFECTS OF TOBACCO because it was effective in giving the message. Students actually were scared of the havoc it plays. And at the end of the day a majority of them believed that cigarette is a pipe with a fire at one end and a fool at the other. They pledged not to smoke or use any other form of tobacco in their life.
After this we visited malls and market places. Many smokers confessed that they started smoking in early teenage. They thought that they would leave it soon but they weren’t able to. Many believed that the use of tobacco caused more harm to those who inhaled the smoke and felt safe from the threat and we helped them get over their misconception and told them how bad it was for them.

It was terrible to know that some people relied on cigarettes or gutka in hardships and crisis. They even related the consumption of tobacco with a particular activity. For some watching television or talking on phone was just the right moment to indulge in smoking. People with different financial backgrounds easily find a brand to meet their standards and pockets. A man in 30s told us about an appalling reality. He used to smoke with his friends in college (graduation) days. They frequently had competitions of who can smoke more cigarettes and sometimes he inhaled more than 20 cigarettes a day. They took tobacco as a stress buster and smoking in exam days was a must. He lost a friend to cigarettes and it was then he decided to quit.
He consulted doctors, used nicotine gum and brought the numbers of cigarettes down slowly but steadily. He confessed that he still smokes sometimes but was reluctant to give a live interview or even a photo in the fear that his family will get to know.