Doctors and public health experts assume that people smoke cigarettes because they’re addicted to the nicotine. But among U.S. teens who are frequent smokers, 46 percent of girls and 30 percent of boys smoke in part to control their weight.
The practice is significantly more common among teens who feel they need to slim down. In a survey, girls who said they were “much too fat” were nearly 225 percent more likely to smoke to lose weight than girls who said their weight was about right.
It's not always just about the immediate pleasure or enjoyment; sometimes it's a means to another end.
