As a professional in social work, youth programming, or sports, you play a key role in tobacco and nicotine prevention. Youth-related professions encompass a wide range of activities and diverse fields, such as youth programming, educational guidance, coaching, sports instruction, mediation, street outreach, and volunteer work.
You support children and adolescents in their daily lives, in a variety of often informal settings: sports activities, recreation centers, trips and camps, public spaces, nightlife, and even through volunteer work with organizations and on social media. These settings offer you unique opportunities to build relationships, observe behavior, identify potential vulnerabilities, and address prevention in ways that are appropriate for the young people’s age, social background, and life circumstances.
Your Role as Youth Professionals
Through your presence and your close relationship with young people, you play an important role in their lives and development. Your role can also help with prevention of tobacco and nicotine use.
You can:
- create a caring, safe, and supportive environment that encourages discussion;
- have an open-minded and unbiased attitude;
- provide reliable information that is appropriate for the young people’s age and level of understanding;
- encourage participation and critical thinking;
- help them find the right information, understand it, and use it to make positive decisions about their health;
- strengthen psychosocial skills such as assertiveness, resistance to peer pressure, and emotion management;
- identify high-risk situations and refer them to specialized resources as needed.
However, the role of social workers and youth workers has its limitations
- You are not a substitute for parents or healthcare professionals.
- Since your work is often based on the principle of voluntary participation, you can inform, support, and guide, but you cannot impose your will.
- Your scope of work is limited in terms of time and space because recreational activities are often one-off and unstructured.
You are not alone: professionals, online resources, and specialist services are available to provide support and guidance when you are facing difficulties. You will find various resources below.
Contextual Characteristics
It’s not easy to talk to teens about sensitive topics like tobacco or nicotine use. It’s important to take their reality and personal experiences into account in order to establish a realistic and supportive dialogue.
Adolescence is a time of intense physical, hormonal, emotional, and social changes. These changes can lead to a desire to experiment and take risks. Because their brains are still developing, adolescents are more sensitive to nicotine and are at a higher risk of nicotine dependence.
Furthermore, young people live in an environment filled with information from a wide variety of sources, some of which may even be contradictory. Tobacco and nicotine products come in many forms, are appealing, and are heavily marketed to young people, particularly through social media. As a result, adolescents are often exposed to them, for example:
- peer pressure and social norms;
- marketing strategies that trivialize or promote these products;
- misconceptions about the actual risks of tobacco products, such as “it’s natural,” “it’s relaxing,” or “it’s less risky.”
The resources available on this site are designed to support professionals by providing reliable information and tools for addressing the issue of consumption of tobacco products.
Learn more
Best Practices
Certain attitudes foster dialogue, build trust, and contribute to effective prevention:
- Stay informed on a regular basis so that you can provide reliable and up-to-date information;
- tailor the message depending on whether the young person smokes or not;
- encourage dialogue, active listening, and the active participation of young people;
- Respond to questions with kindness, without judgment or exaggeration;
- reinforce positive behaviors and encourage healthy habits;
- Incorporate prevention into existing activities (group projects, sports, and cultural activities);
- Learn to recognize the warning signs of problematic substance use or dependence;
- If there are warning signs or concerns about substance use, work together with parents, teachers, the school health office, other professionals (e.g., school social workers), and specialist services.
Within your organization, it is recommended that you:
- Have clear internal policies regarding the use of tobacco products and nicotine products within your organization;
- clearly define areas where tobacco and nicotine use is permitted and prohibited, in accordance with the legal framework;
- Follow your institution’s internal procedures for handling situations of concern; if in doubt, consult your administration;
- Set a good example: Do not use tobacco products or nicotine products in the presence of young people. If you smoke, do so only in designated areas where young people cannot see you;
- Regularly discuss the situations you encounter with your peers and colleagues.
Practices to Avoid
Certain behaviors can make dialogue more difficult. It is best to avoid the following practices:
- to lecture or make someone feel guilty;
- to sensationalize or trivialize tobacco and nicotine use;
- spreading inaccurate or alarming information to “scare” people;
- to handle concerning situations on one’s own without access to specialized support.
How should we talk about tobacco products and nicotine products?
If a young person comes to talk to you about their substance use, you can:
- treat their situation with respect, compassion, and confidentiality;
- listen without trivializing or dramatizing;
- tailor your response to the person’s needs: whether they need someone to listen, information, support, or help to quit;
- use language that is as clear as possible and avoid overly technical terms;
- to highlight the merits of their request and suggest appropriate resources.
In the vast majority of situations involving tobacco or nicotine use, youth professionals must treat the information they receive as confidential. Only when there are concrete indications that there is a serious risk to the young person’s physical, psychological, or sexual well-being should they contact the Child and Adult Protection Authority (APEA) (Art. 314d CC).
If you see a young person smoking, it is recommended that you take the following steps:
- Stay calm and adopt a caring, nonjudgmental approach;
- Remind him of the guidelines and rules in effect;
- Open a conversation by trying to understand the context behind this behavior: curiosity, peer pressure, habit, concerns;
- Adapt the message and send it:
- If the young person doesn’t usually smoke: challenge common misconceptions and correct their false beliefs; discuss ways to resist peer pressure;
- If the young person already smokes: Open a conversation about the effects and the risks of dependence, and discuss the resources and support services available;
- If necessary, refer the person to a specialized facility.
If you use tobacco products or nicotine products yourself:
- Be aware of your role as a role model;
- Take a clear stance on tobacco and nicotine use: even if you smoke or use nicotine products yourself, expressing disapproval is an important protective factor against young people taking up these habits;
- Focus on prevention messages, regardless of your personal usage;
- Avoid using drugs in front of young people, and if the topic comes up, explain honestly why you use them;
- Talk about your difficulties in quitting or your intention to cut back and eventually stop completely.
Key messages to convey
- Tobacco products seriously harm the health of consumers and those around them (secondhand smoke).
- Tobacco and nicotine products create dependence, and nicotine impairs brain development in adolescents.
- Electronic cigarettes, hookahs, and smoke-free nicotine products are not risk-free either and can cause health problems.
- Smoking can cause bad breath, tooth discoloration, and a decline in physical performance even in the short term.
- The tobacco industry specifically targets young people, which can make these products more appealing to adolescents.
Related Topics
Resources for Professionals
- Thematic Report on Tobacco and Nicotine in the Child and Youth Social and Cultural Activities Sector, Swiss Umbrella Association for Social and Cultural Activities for Children and Youth (AFAJ)
- "Osez" Brochure: Participatory Approaches to Discussing Substance Use with Youth in School Settings (GREA)
- Informational materials to order or download for free: Tobacco flyer, vape flyer, shisha flyer, snus & more
School Health Promotion and Prevention Program
Each canton has its own school health promotion and prevention program. For resources, contacts, and guidelines specific to your canton, see: Child and Youth Policy — Cantons. The Infodrog directory also lists “Health Promotion and Prevention” organizations by canton.