London, ON – The Middlesex-London Health Unit and the Municipality of Strathroy-Caradoc are encouraging families to come to their free Smoke-Free Movie Night in Strathroy this Friday night. It’s the fourth year the Health Unit has hosted this great family event and the first time it’s coming to Strathroy-Caradoc. The free outdoor screening of DreamWorks’ 2015 hit animated film Home will be held at the Fair Grounds Recreation Complex. Games, activities, face painting and more get underway at 5:00 p.m., while the film begins at dusk.
Smoke-Free Movie Night is part of the effort by the Health Unit, its One Life One You youth advocacy group and the Canadian Cancer Society to spread the word that smoking in youth-rated movies is not okay.
“The smoking shown in movies gives the impression that tobacco use is more widespread than it actually is, and that’s a major concern because it doesn’t reflect reality and more importantly many of those films are rated for children and youth,” says Linda Stobo, Manager of the Health Unit’s Chronic Disease Prevention and Tobacco Control Team. “Often the smoking shown in youth rated films glamourizes tobacco use instead of portraying the consequences, such as chronic diseases, including many forms of cancer, and reduced life expectancy.”
A recent study that focused on onscreen tobacco use in top-grossing films released between 2004 and 2013 found that 86% of the movies depicting tobacco use were youth-rated in Ontario. Not surprisingly, research in this area has also shown that the more children and youth see smoking in movies, the more likely they are to start smoking themselves. For several years, the Health Unit and many other health organizations and agencies have raised awareness about this important issue. The groups are continuing their effort to have smoking and tobacco use cut from youth-rated films, by encouraging the Ontario Film Review Board to give all new movies containing tobacco use an adult rating of 18A.
The current Environment Canada forecast for Strathroy calls for mainly sunny skies on Friday, with some cloudy periods at night and a low of 14 degrees Celsius. Families who plan to attend the Smoke-Free Movie Night are encouraged to dress warmly and to bring lawn chairs and blankets. In the event of poor weather, the Smoke-Free Movie Night will be moved indoors to the West Middlesex Memorial Centre Arena.
Media Contact:
Dan Flaherty, Communications Manager, Middlesex-London Health Unit, 519-663-5317 extension 2469 or 519-617-0570 (cell.)
Spokesperson:
Linda Stobo, Chronic Disease Prevention and Tobacco Control Manager, Middlesex-London Health Unit