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Fox News ran a segment this week featuring Dr. Marc Siegel warning that cigarette smoking among teenagers is rising again, a claim meant to jolt viewers into attention and concern. The network paired that warning with Siegel’s new message that faith and science can work together to heal our nation’s ills, giving the story a distinctly moral angle.
Before we panic, the best national data tell a different story: the 2024 National Youth Tobacco Survey found youth tobacco use fell to historic lows, with cigarette smoking among high schoolers at a record low. That hard data should guide policy and parental response, not alarmist headlines that ignore the larger trend.
Having said that, the CDC data do show worrying cracks that are easy to miss when you only look at aggregate numbers — nicotine pouches and certain combustible tobacco use climbed in pockets, and some demographic groups saw increases in specific products. Those local and product-specific upticks matter because they can presage broader problems if left unchecked, especially when new nicotine products skirt regulations and social norms.
Let’s be blunt: the cultural rot spreading on social media and through celebrity glamour plays a big role in undoing decades of progress. Young people are constantly sold a fantasy where rebellion equals smoking, and platforms that profit off attention amplify that messaging while politicians debate pointless bans instead of defending families.
Dr. Marc Siegel used his appearance to tie the public-health debate back to something conservatives know well — faith, family, and personal responsibility — themes he also expands on in his new book. If we want lasting solutions, reminding communities that science and moral responsibility can coexist is exactly the kind of message our country needs right now.
Conservative solutions are straightforward: empower parents, restore school programs that teach thrift and self-control, and hold Big Tech and flavor-peddling corporations accountable where they criminally market to kids. Washington’s reflexive answer is more regulation and moralizing from bureaucrats; the better path is community-driven action that strengthens families and gives kids something better to aspire to than a filtered cigarette ad.
America won the public-health fight against youth smoking once because communities, churches, and parents refused to let kids be sold out for profit. It’s time to dust off that same resolve, demand honest reporting of the facts, and focus our fire on the real culprits — corrupt marketing, broken culture, and institutions that have abandoned the family — so our children can grow up healthy, free, and proud.
