Overall, students in the schools that had participated in the ASSIST peer supporter program were 22 percent less likely to take up smoking than those in the control schools. "The ASSIST program was effective in reducing the number of young people taking up smoking for up to 2 years after its delivery," Campbell said.
"We estimate that if implemented on a UK-wide basis, the ASSIST peer supporter program could potentially reduce the number of 14- to 15-year-olds taking up smoking by around 43,000 per year," she added.
In a commentary published with the study, Robin Mermelstein calls the findings of the ASSIST study "encouraging," adding that "too many adolescents still smoke." [
The University of Illinois, Chicago researcher also notes that the absence of any effect on young people who were already smoking "calls for greater attention to programmes for smoking cessation."
SOURCE: The Lancet, May 10, 2008.
