One started at 7

Twelve-year-old Lauren Gray began smoking when she was seven. An older sister gave her the first cigarette. 

By the time she was 11, she said she was smoking a pack a day. 

Then, last February, she decided she’d had enough. With the help of a program at the Hancock Middle School in south St. Louis County, she began the process of quitting. 

Since school’s been out, she said she’s only had one cigarette this summer.

When asked what made her decide to quit, she said, “When I saw those diseased organs caused by smoking. The liver looked just like a raw T-bone steak.” 

She was referring to a display of human organs that had been damaged by tobacco. It was part of a voluntary 8-week smoking cessation program in the Hancock School District.

Lauren was the first student to sign up for the cessation program. 

Andi Boyd, a health educator for BJC Health System, taught the classes. She said there were 15 students who signed up for the program but only seven of them were able to quit. The program doesn’t rely on any medical aids to smoking cessation. 

“We set a quit date and the kids quit cold turkey,” she said. The rest of the program is education and peer support among the members.

On the quit date, each student signed a non-binding “Stop Smoking Commitment” form. The form was signed and then witnessed by another. The student also wrote down a reward they would give themselves if they could stop for the first week. 

If any of the students failed at first, they could establish another quit date, Boyd said. 

Angie Hasenfratz is another 12-year-old in the program. She said she started smoking at 10 and got up to about half a pack a day. 

When asked about why she started, she said, “I guess I got so stressed with the divorce of my parents.” She said she got her first cigarette from a friend in elementary school.

She said she decided to quit smoking when “my uncle told me about the black stuff he coughed up.” 

She admits she has smoked about a half cigarette a week since school let out this summer. 

Boyd said the youngsters used to meet three times a week during school. But, in the summer, there aren’t as many support sessions. She has been calling meetings once a month since school has been out. 

Of the 15 how signed up for the school program, all but one were girls. 

She said girls often have a harder time quitting smoking than boys. “Some girls think of smoking as a way to lose weight,” Boyd said.

Lauren said she has actually lost 15 pounds since she started the cessation program. 

She said food tastes better since she cut back on smoking. “But, now I crave salads. I don’t crave cheeseburgers anymore,” she said. 

She also said she feels better since quitting and has been exercising more.

Angie hasn’t had any problem with weight gain either although “food now has the real taste.” She said, “I’m walking more now.”

Boyd said smoking is both an addiction to tobacco and a regular habit. People often combine smoking with regular physical activities, such as talking on the phone or ending a meal. 

“Kids will think of smoking when walking home from school,” she said. 

Therefore, the kids get some “mouth and hand toys” such as hard candy, straws and chewing gum, she said. 

Lauren said holding a straw, instead of a cigarette, helped her break the habit of smoking. 

Boyd said the school nurse was given extra candy and chewing gum. Then, when kids in the program had an urge to smoke while at school, they could drop in for a piece of candy or a stick of gum.