London's Pulse: Medical Officer of Health reports 1848-1972
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Hints from the Health Department. Leaflet from the archive of the Society of Medical Officers of Health. Credit: Wellcome Collection, London
Camberwell 1964
[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for Camberwell.
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17
Children
The many studies undertaken during the past five
years show that at least one boy in ten has started to
smoke before he leaves the primary school; it appears
that less than 3 per cent of girls indulge in the occasional
cigarette at this age. Surveys in Camberwell
2,000 children-have shown that at the time of entry to
senior schools 11 per cent of boys and 1 per cent of
girls smoke. The percentage of smokers and the number of
cigarettes smoked go up sharply after the first year at
school and continue to increase among both sexes. When
they leave school, children are approaching the practices
of adults. Figures in Camberwell, obtained shortly after
anti-smoking propaganda was intensified, are a little
lower than the national averages, but statistical
inaccuracies cannot be ruled out. Later surveys in the
same schools suggest that intensification of effort has
met with a measure of success. The results of the first
survey are shown in the following table.
Ages and percentage of smokers
| Boys | Girls | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| 12 years – | 11 per cent | 12 years – | 1.5 per cent |
| 13 years – | 25 per cent | 13 years – | 12 per cent |
| 14 years – | 25 per cent | 14 years – | 18 per cent |
| 15 years – | 26 per cent | 15 years – | 23 per cent |
| 16 years – | 34 per cent | 16 years – | 28 per cent |
An earlier enquiry among senior girls in another
school revealed 36 per cent of smokers, but a third of
this number were occasional smokers only. In an English
public school 46 per cent of boys between 15 and 19 were
regular smokers; 50 per cent of women students in a
teachers' training college smoked. Early and excessive
smoking among children is reported from many parts of the
world.
Why do children smoke?
Special health educational campaigns pay the biggest
dividends when they take account of all available knowledge bout the habits and customs contributing to the
illnesses against which the preventive drive is being
directed. This truism has a special bearing on antismoking
measures among children and young people, a large