For the past few decades, health officials and anti-smoking groups have worked tirelessly to wean people off cigarettes, cigars, pipes, and other forms of tobacco– and for the most part, it has worked. A ban on cigarette advertising, laws that prohibit indoor smoking and other forms of tobacco control have resulted in a generous decline in the number of people who smoke in the United States.
However, researchers have found that there is a staunch group of smokers, about 1 in 5 people, who they can’t seem to reach through bans, warnings, and other anti-smoking initiatives. At the WIRED Health Conference last week, Nicholas Christakis, Director of the Human Nature Laboratory, explains why there are smokers who are simply unwilling to give up, despite the overwhelming health risks associated with tobacco smoking, and how these individuals can change their lifestyle with a very simple adjustment.
Christakis: Want to Stop Smoking? Change Your Cluster from WIRED on FORA.tv
