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Young smokers think habits reduce risk

KANSAS CITY, Mo., June 17 (UPI) -- Some young adults think healthy diet and exercise and switching to cigarettes low in tar or nicotine protect against smoking risks, U.S. researchers said.

Smokers thought good health habits provided more protection against tobacco-related health problems than non-smokers or former smokers, said researchers at the University of Missouri-Kansas City.

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The researchers surveyed more than 36,000 recruits to U.S. Air Force basic training -- one-third of whom were smokers. Most of the recruits surveyed said changes in cigarette type or lifestyle would either provide little or no protection against smoking risk, but a large proportion of the recruits thought such changes could affect smoking and health risks, researchers said.

Despite these assumptions, 40 percent of smokers said they had not made any of these changes.

Smokers who thought their health was most at risk usually switched to cigarettes low in tar or nicotine. Smokers who thought using smokeless tobacco would lower health risks were more likely to quite smoking one year after the survey.

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