San Antonio, Texas, could become one of the first major Texas cities to raise the legal age of tobacco usage from 18 to 21. Due to this, tobacco addiction is expected to decrease. Right now addiction is most likely to start between the ages of 18 and 20 due to the brain still developing.
The Metro Health District claims that by raising the age limit a little bit higher, that gateway for high school students to obtain cigarettes will be discontinued due to the age increase.
“We know that the vast majority of high school kids get their cigarettes from people ages 18 to 21 so if we were to raise the legal age to 21, then we are cutting into that pipeline of availability for high school kids to get access to cigarettes,” said Metro Health Director Colleen Bridger. The Metro Health District aren’t the only ones that support this age raise. Senator Carlos Uresti has been pushing a bill since 2007. In November of 2016, nearly one year ago, Uresti released a press release stating what he hoped to accomplish with his newly submitted bill.
“An increased smoking age takes advantage of a simple fact—the later one tries that first cigarette, the less likely they are to become a lifetime user,” said Uresti.
According to the Campaign for Tobacco Free Kids, nearly 503,000 kids die before the age of 18 due to premature tobacco use. By raising the standard, they can bring down the number by at least 33 percent.
When I was in elementary school, we were taught the deadly effects of what happens when you become addicted to smoking. As children, this horrified us. We didn’t want that to happen to us. It wasn’t until middle school when someone offered me a cigarette and I thought ‘Why not?’
That same day, my uncle died from lung cancer. He had been smoking for the past 30 years, but finally lost his battle.
I took this as a wake-up call.
We, as millennials, have a voice that can be heard. If you think that your city should consider raising the legal smoking age, or have other issues that you would like them to know, try visiting https://www.house.gov/representatives/find/ to find your local representative.
