JOE CAMEL BOOSTED SMOKING IN TEENS

ATLANTA -- The number of American youths taking up smoking as a daily habit
jumped 73 percent between Joe Camel's debut in 1988 and 1996, the
government said yesterday.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said tobacco ads that rely
heavily on giveaways and kid-friendly cartoons are partly to blame.

More than 1.2 million Americans under 18 started smoking daily in 1996, up
from 708,000 in 1988, the CDC estimated.

The rate at which teens became smokers also increased, climbing 50 percent.
In 1996, 77 of every 1,000 nonsmoking teens picked up the habit. In 1988,
the rate was 51 per 1,000.

"It's terrible news," said Dr. Gary Giovino, chief epidemiologist for the
CDC's Office on Smoking and Health. "There's a lot of important things to
consider, which include the increase in tobacco ads that have a youth
focus. The appearance of tobacco smoking in the media has just skyrocketed
lately."

A spokeswoman for R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Co. insisted that peer pressure and
smoking parents are what drive most teens to smoke, not advertising. The
industry has said it does not target teen-agers with its advertising.

"It just doesn't make sense to say Joe Camel fueled youth smoking,"
spokeswoman Jan Smith said. "We have long said that campaign was aimed at
adult smokers, period."

The study was based on surveys of 78,330 Americans ages 12 to 66 conducted
by the CDC between 1994 and 1997. Researchers extrapolated nationwide
estimates from that sample.

Those interviewed were asked if they ever had a daily smoking habit and if
so when they started. They were also asked at what age they took their
first puff.

In calculations back to 1965, the CDC estimated that the rate for beginning
smokers peaked in 1977, when 67 of every 1,000 potential smokers developed
a habit. The lowest rate -- 44 per 1,000 -- was in 1983.

Daily smoking rates begin increasing steadily again in 1988, the same year
R.J. Reynolds introduced Joe Camel in its advertising for Camel cigarettes,
the CDC said.

"After Joe Camel was introduced, then the promotional-type strategies
kicked in," rewarding smokers with coupons and trinkets that encouraged
them to buy more cigarettes, Giovino said. "A lot of parents weren't aware
of Camel cash and that stuff, but kids were."

Joe Camel was retired last year, after critics including President Clinton
said the character was a blatant example of cigarette marketing aimed at
children.

The CDC said its survey mirrored previous studies that estimated more than
3,000 Americans under 18 become habitual smokers each day. The agency also
estimates 32 percent of smokers will die from smoking-related illnesses.

Checked-by: Pat Dolan