Five Keys for Helping Your Child Resist Nicotine and Other Addictions

As parents, we want the very best for our children—and we want them to avoid pitfalls and things that can derail their lives and send them down a dark path.

And that means we want them to stay away from addictions, especially addictions that can have serious consequences and have devastating, even life-threatening, effects on their health. Use of addictive, dangerous substances—whether legal like tobacco or illegal like fentanyl—can exact a heavy price that we don’t want our children to have to pay.

A complicating challenge for parents is that trends change. New products—often claiming to be beneficial, risk-free, etc.—arrive on the scene with the same or new dangers. Other substances thought to be on their way out are suddenly viewed as retro and popular.

How can parents keep up? And how can they help their children resist the siren call of nicotine and other addictive substances?

Here are five basic keys for helping your children avoid the dark path of addiction.

1. Stay up to date

One of the most important things you can do as a parent is stay aware of societal trends, social media, and things happening in your community and your children’s lives. Things come and go—and sometimes come back again.

One dramatic example of this is cigarette use. Smoking tobacco has decreased dramatically in the United States over the last 60 years. What was once the habit of almost half of U.S. adults now affects only around one in 10, according to a 2025 Gallup poll.

That’s great progress! But it’s not zero. And young people are still vulnerable.

Smoking cigarettes is not the only option for tobacco use—there’s also vaping, nicotine pouches and smokeless tobacco (which includes chewing tobacco, snuff, dip or snus). And unlike smoking, these other options do not leave the telltale odor that alerts parents. Only about 40 percent of the parents of young people who vape even suspect it. (Around 70 percent of the parents of children who smoke are aware or suspect it.)

These days young people are more attracted to other means of using tobacco. In 2024 just over 10 percent of U.S. high school students and 5.4 percent of U.S. middle school students said they were currently using tobacco. E-cigarettes were the top product, used by almost 6 percent of high school and middle school students.

The next most commonly used tobacco product was nicotine pouches. Zyn, the most common brand, was introduced in 2014. The porous pouch, which comes in flavors such as mango, espresso and mint, is put between the lip and gum and marketed as smokeless and spitless. It contains nicotine powder instead of tobacco leaf.

Promoted on TikTok and other social media, nicotine pouches are touted as a means for improving one’s focus and confidence. Ironically, as Afif El-Hasan M.D. told the American Lung Association, using nicotine pouches “affects the brain’s ability to retain information and can lead to attention problems. It affects impulse control so it can cause the same effects as ADHD or make ADHD even worse.” And rather than easing anxiety or depression, nicotine can increase it.

These are serious issues—especially for young people whose brains are still developing!

In addition to a number of health risks, the high levels of nicotine make them very addictive. And the average user goes through as many as eight to 12 pouches a day; that’s the equivalent of smoking up to 1½ packs of cigarettes.

Despite the numerous concerns, sales are booming. One study found sales of nicotine pouches increased by 641 percent between 2019 and 2022. Use by 18-year-olds doubled just between 2023 and 2024.

There is also concern that the nicotine addiction will lead some nicotine pouch users to begin smoking cigarettes. Many experts are already worried that smoking cigarettes can appear edgy, cool and glamorous to youth.

In February 2026, Truth Initiative, a nonprofit known for its smoking prevention campaigns, published a study showing that exposure to on-screen tobacco imagery doubles or, in some cases, even triples the odds of a young person deciding to vape or smoke in the next year.

“Gen Z didn’t grow up with the same anti-smoking firewalls that Millennials did. To them, cigarettes are retro—like Polaroids or landlines.” That’s a problem now because in recent years smoking cigarettes has started to again become more common in movies and streaming series, sadly even (and perhaps especially) in those aimed at young people. Of the 10 Academy Awards “Best Picture” nominees in 2025, eight featured tobacco use, and several starred celebrities smoking on screen.

John Samuels, CEO of Wellworth, a healthcare advisory firm, attributes this to several possible factors: “Gen Z didn’t grow up with the same anti-smoking firewalls that Millennials did. To them, cigarettes are retro—like Polaroids or landlines. With influencers and celebrities blurring the lines between art and endorsement, cigarettes have re-entered the lifestyle conversation—sometimes without context or consequence” (“Why Smoking Is Making a Comeback,” June 20, 2025).

All of this illustrates why it’s important for parents to be alert and attentive to what’s popular and being promoted to their children. Being aware puts you in a better position for the next key.

2. Talk with your children

Experts recommend parents talk with their children about tobacco and drugs from an early age—and then keep the conversation going.

With young children, look for natural, everyday opportunities. For instance, if you see someone smoking—in real life or on-screen—you can talk about how it hurts the body. Then you might talk about the harmful effects of other drugs.

Explain in terms they can understand how and why these habits are harmful and dangerous. You might mention, for instance, that people who smoke can’t run (or do other sports) as well. You might explain that an addiction is a very strong urge for something. Because it’s hard to control and hard to stop, an addiction can make people do bad things—things that can hurt themselves and others.

You can help them understand that those who produce and sell things that are addictive will encourage people to try their products. They make big money when people are addicted!

With preteens, you can periodically ask them what they’ve heard about drugs—and then listen to their concerns and questions. If there are things you aren’t sure about, you can let them help you research the subject and find answers.

Hopefully, the conversations you’ve had with your children at a younger age will help you talk to them when they’re teens. Do your best to understand what they’re feeling and dealing with. You’ll also want to make sure they understand the serious consequences and dangers around drugs.

If your teens are driving—or have friends who drive them—make sure you talk about the dangers of driving under the influence of drugs or alcohol. Have clear rules—with stated consequences—that forbid them from driving if they’ve had anything alcoholic to drink.

Set up firm rules about drug and tobacco use as well. They make a difference. One study found that children living in homes with strict rules against tobacco use (for everyone—kids, adults, visitors and workers) were 20 to 26 percent less likely to start using tobacco.

Make your expectations clear, but also make sure they know that if they’re ever in a situation that makes them uncomfortable or where drugs are being offered, they can call or text you and you’ll be there to pick them up.

3. Educate yourself—and your children

In your efforts to stay aware of trends, new products and their accompanying risks and dangers, you and your child will inevitably find trends or new products that you are uncertain about. For instance, you may not know much about snus or nicotine pouches (mentioned above). 

Rather than making assumptions or speaking in generalities, do the research (and/or help your child do the research) necessary to find the facts.

Help your children learn how to get the facts. Talk about who and what are reliable resources for determining whether something is low- or high-risk. Peers—even friends—are not reputable sources. Neither are videos, reels and posts from influencers found on social media.

Trustworthy resources are fact sheets from a government health agency (such as Centers for Disease Control), a reputable hospital or health facility (such as the Mayo Clinic) or a respected health-related website (such as WebMD).

4. Teach your children how to say no

Parents will be relieved to know that current research shows most teens don’t use tobacco or drugs. But teens sometimes overestimate use by their peers or believe the “everyone is doing it” myth.

The example we set will be far more effective than any lecture we can give. Help your teens understand that that’s not the case. Encourage them to choose their friends wisely and join clubs or participate in sports and church-related activities.

Talk with your teens about the need to think ahead so they can avoid situations where drugs or alcohol might be used. Help them to look for red flags and signs that they should skip an event.

And what if they still end up being pressured to try something? Talk about how they can say no. A simple “No, thanks” is sometimes all that’s needed. Other alternatives include using humor (“No, thanks—I need all my brain cells!”), suggesting another activity (“Let’s get something to eat instead”), or just walking away.

And let your teens know they can always use you and your family rules as a reason for turning down tobacco or drugs.

5. Set a good example

What you say and the rules you set are good only if they match your example. Children of smokers are two to four times more likely to smoke or use tobacco themselves. (If you currently smoke, get the help you need and take the steps to quit.)

As parents, the most important thing we can do for our kids is practice what we preach. The example we set will be far more effective than any lecture we can give.

If you have to use over-the-counter or prescription drugs, model careful, responsible use. Follow directions for medications and never take a prescription drug prescribed to someone else. Keep track of the medicines in your home and store them securely.

Demonstrate appreciation and respect for the amazing bodies God has given us.

Practice and talk about healthy habits that your child will need for life. Discuss how actions have consequences. Show your children the value of thinking ahead about what kind of life they want to have and how the choices they make can affect their future. (See “How to Guide Your Children Through a World You Don’t Understand.”)