With celebs and influencers glamourizing 'cigs' online, experts are carefully watching smoking trends
Health experts are concerned that social media influencers and celebrities are glamorizing smoking, potentially reversing decades of progress in tobacco reduction. Despite the trend, research indicates that many people remain unaware of the long-term health risks associated with tobacco use.
Why it matters
The normalization of unhealthy habits on social media platforms poses a significant public health challenge for younger generations.
These are just a few of the world's biggest celebrities who've recently appeared in dozens of photos on Instagram and TikTok, looking impossibly cool while doing something notoriously unhealthy: smoking cigarettes.
"It's almost like they're glamorizing smoking again," said Carolyn Baglole, an associate professor with McGill University's department of medicine.
But even with celebrities caught puffing and influencers hyping the habit, data suggests tobacco use has long been trending downward. Still, if we want it to stay that way, experts say online content glamourizing the habit shouldn't be ignored.
Global study found many people don't understand the dangers of smoking
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