Teenagers are reluctant to believe that smoking can kill them, but they may respond to the fact that the tobacco industry is exploiting some of the poorest people in the world

The run up to the ban on cigarettes in pubs has created a cloud of discussion which provides parents with a valuable opportunity to broach the issue at home. No parent, not even an inveterate smoker, wants to see their child with a cigarette. The warnings that fill us with fear, however, cause teens to tune out faster than a panel discussion on CAP reform.

The fear of possibly getting lung cancer or heart disease somewhere in the distant future only interests a child until the next time someone offers them a cigarette. At this point, they simply get on with the business of fitting in.

Health promoters across the globe have attempted to communicate the dangers of smoking in a manner relevant to a youth audience, but aged skin and yellow teeth are still only in the realm of the possible - and risk-taking is what teenagers do best.

This generation is more switched on to global issues than any that went before. The worldwide anti-capitalist movement is chiefly populated by the young, disillusioned with the bullying tactics of big business.

For parents who are looking for some useful arguments for young people to use in their personal battle with cigarettes and as a justification to their friends, here are some non health-related disadvantages to smoking. I could have done with these in my arsenal when I was hanging around park benches age 14 trying to think of ways to say no without looking like a loser.

• The tobacco industry is one of the biggest employers of children in the world. Child labour is thought to account for up to one third of all tobacco output.
• Tobacco companies work hardest selling to countries where poverty and war have made it difficult for governments to inform their own people of the dangers of smoking. Cigarette smoking is on the rise in countries where the health of the population is already weakened by poverty and disease.
• The tobacco industry claims to target adults. This may be so in rich countries like Ireland; in poor regions such as Eastern Europe, South America and Africa tobacco companies give away free cigarettes to children to encourage addiction.
• If cigarettes are not meant for children, why do they contain maple syrup, licorice extract, vanilla extract, orange oil and sugar?
• In 1997, over 5.5 million pounds of methyl bromide, an ozone-depleting chemical, was used on tobacco fields worldwide.
• An estimated 200,000 hectares of forest are removed by tobacco farming each year. Deforestation occurs mainly in developing countries, amounting to 1.5 per cent of global net losses of forest cover.
• It has been estimated that 10 to 20 million people could be fed by food crops grown instead of tobacco.
• Many poor countries are entering a phase in which life expectancy has improved because of the control of infectious diseases, but there are now substantial increases in tobacco-related illness which threaten to reverse this progress.

These are just a few reasons why a socially conscious generation may not want to spend their money supporting the tobacco industry. While peer pressure is an important factor in children's behaviour, parents can't compete on that field. Our only weapon is the respect we may win for introducing adult themes for discussion. In this way, children and teens may just feel that their intelligence is respected and make intelligent decisions as a result.

Trendsetting: What's new in the world of parenting

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• Got a problem with cold sores in the family? Broccoli may thwart the herpes virus, a new study has found. Lab studies of monkey and human cells found that a compound found naturally in broccoli and other cruciferous vegetables such as cabbage and brussels sprouts may interfere with factors that helps herpes cells reproduce.

• Sporty dads have sporty daughters. The September issue of Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise has found that physically active fathers provide powerful role models for their daughters as well as for their sons.