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In its latest battle against under-aged tobacco use, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration is banking on two things that are important to teens — having control of their lives and looking good.
The FDA has unveiled a national campaign intended to reduce the number of teens — in particular, those between the ages of 12 and 17.
“We did a lot of research with public health experts and marketing experts,” FDA Commissioner Margaret Hamburg told ABC News.

With kids in the targeted age group, “We found that these messages about their appearance — wrinkling skin, premature damaged gums, tooth loss — and also messages about losing control resonated the most with kids.”

The US$115 million TV, radio and print ad campaign begins nationwide February 11 on media frequented by teens, including MTV and Teen Vogue, and will continue for at least the next year, officials said.

More than 3 200 teens in the United States try their first cigarette each day and more than 700 kids under 18 become daily smokers, according to the FDA.

In one commercial, a teen girl who doesn’t have enough money to buy a pack of cigarettes peels off a piece of her cheek as payment. The tag line says: “What do cigarettes cost? Your smooth skin. Smoking causes wrinkles and aging prematurely.”

Another commercial shows a young boy being bullied by a miniature man, who drags him outside — and then turns into a cigarette. The ad, according to the FDA, represents a loss of control in a teen’s life, many of whom think smoking is innocent and that they would be able to quit at any point.

“The feedback we got from the target audience, these kids, was that these messages were understandable, they were powerful, they were meaningful and they made them think about smoking,” Hamburg said. “That’s our goal.” – abcnews.go.com.