Smoking Influences Differ by Gender

Whether or not your child decides to smoke may depend, in part, on gender. According to research by Weill Cornell Medical College, tween attitudes towards smoking and drug use are different for boys and girls.

For the study, confidential surveys were distributed to 6th and 7th graders. The results showed that tween girls are more likely to engage in smoking and other drug abuse if their friends do, whereas boys are influenced by their age group as a whole, and not just their friends.

Also, it appears as though parents do influence their children's behaviors. Children of parents who had permissive views on smoking and drinking were more likely to light up or drink alcohol than their peers.

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