A recent study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association examined the link between smoking in the movies and the affect it may have on young people.

The study concluded that youths “heavily exposed” to smoking in the movies are between two to three times more likely to begin smoking than those with limited exposure.

To track the use of tobacco in films, the group Thumbs Up! Thumbs Down! (TUTD) counted the actual times someone smoked on the screen (in the 50 top-grossing U.S. movies each year between 1991 and 2009).  By counting the number of instances tobacco was used in these films, TUTD determined:

• Between 1991 and 1997, the number of tobacco-related instances ranged from 2,106 to 3,386 per year.
• The number decreased to 1,612 in 1998, but then escalated to 3,967 in 2005.
• By 2009, the number of instances dropped to 1,935.
• In 2009, for the first time the percentage of top-grossing movies that did not show smoking exceeded 50%.
• However, in 2009, 54% of PG-13 movies contained tobacco use, although this number was down from 65% between 2006-2008 and 80% between 2002-2003.

The entire study can be viewed online at JAMA or in the publication’s print edition. [audio:http://hospitalstay.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/12/14-Smoke-It.mp3|titles=Smoke It]