NEW TEEN SMOKERS UP 73 PER CENT

Joe Camel Takes Heat From Doctors In U.S.

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

The Centres 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 per
cent. 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."

The Tobacco Institute and R. J. Reynolds Tobacco Co., the cigarette
maker that introduced Joe Camel, had no immediate comment.

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.

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, the CDC
said.

Copyright 1998 Associated Press. All rights reserved.

Checked-by: Patrick Henry