The last time the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) tried to use graphic images to deter smokers in 2012, a judge ruled
its graphic labels–which included images of rotting lips, corpses, and
diseased lungs–unconstitutional. Two years later, the FDA has revealed
its latest move, announcing its first national anti-smoking campaign
aimed at teens. At first look, the result is similarly dramatic, though
slightly less frightening: One ad features a teen pulling out a tooth
with a wrench to pay for a pack of cigarettes, while another simply
focuses on a young woman with wrinkles.
Called
“The Real Cost,
”
the campaign aims to decrease the number of teens between the ages 12
and 17 from becoming hooked on tobacco by emphasizing the bodily harm
smoking can inflict–and tapping into teens’ concerns about their
appearance. “The FDA has collaborated with some of the brightest and
most creative minds to develop a multimedia initiative designed to make
the target audience acutely aware of the risk from every cigarette by
highlighting consequences that young people are really concerned about,”
said Mitchell Zeller, director of the FDA’s Center for Tobacco Products
said in a statement. The campaign also underscores the addictive
quality of nicotine, since many young people presume they can quit
whenever they want.
The ads, which will begin appearing nationwide on Feb. 11, will be
seen in 200 different markets on TV, radio, print, and online. You can
watch a preview here:
Before launch, the
FDA conducted massive ad testing and found the ads
to be memorable and engaging among their target audience. The agency
plans to track the effectiveness of the campaign by monitoring 8,000
people between the ages of 11 and 16 for two years to see whether there
are any changes in tobacco knowledge and attitudes. “As a regulatory
agency, everything the FDA does is grounded in science,” Zeller said.
Tobacco use had a sharp drop among teens between 1997 and 2003, but
began to slow in 2003 and came to almost a halt between 2009 to 2011,
according to data released from the CDC
in 2012. Health experts speculate that the reasons for the range from
lower state dedication to the cause to teen’s growing interest in other
products like small cigars. Emerging research shows that teens are also taking a liking to e-cigarettes, which don’t contain tobacco but still have nicotine.
The FDA’s latest initiative is part of their overall move to tighten
their control over the tobacco industry. Every day, more than 3,200
young people under the age of 18 try their first cigarette, and more
than 700 of them will become daily smokers. It is the leading cause of
preventable disease, disability, and death in the U.S., and responsible
for 480,000 deaths every year.