Anti-smoking campaign from the FDA targets hip-hop youth

The Food and Drug administration (FDA) changed their style to "hip-hop" in order to appeal to the young African-Americans, Hispanics and other minorities to stop smoking.

Its anti-smoking campaign, "Fresh Empire," is worth $128 million and funded from the acquired fees of the tobacco industry. According to Washington Post, the first ad will be televised on Oct. 13 in tandem with the 2015 BET Hip-Hop Awards. In addition to televising the ads, there will also be local outreach and events with musicians and DJs to help prevent young minorities from taking up the harmful habit of smoking.

"Unfortunately, the health burdens of tobacco use disproportionately affect minority teens - particularly African American and Hispanic youth," said Dr. Jonca Bull, FDA's Assistant Commissioner for Minority Health, via an NBC News report. "The 'Fresh Empire' campaign will help reach teens at a key point in their lives when experimenting with smoking can lead to addiction."

The report added that youth from minority groups have a higher risk of cigarette smoking and developing related disease later in life. The FDA has also stated that tobacco use starts during adolescence which could lead to tobacco addiction. Nearly 90 percent of smokers have tried cigarette smoking by 18.

Furthermore, FDA officials stated that young people who are into the hip-hop culture are likelier to smoke than other youth. They are confident that their campaign can break through to young hip-hop fans in the effort to dissuade them from smoking tobacco.

"We know from our research that remaining in control is an important pillar of hip-hop culture. But smoking represents a loss of control, so tobacco use is actually in conflict with that priority," said Mitch Zeller, director of FDA's Center for Tobacco Products, via CBS News report.

The video and health information on the website of the campaign focuses on being "fresh and in control" and how taking up the tobacco habit can stop those things. It also contains the various social media websites where young advocates can follow for updates on events and of the campaign.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, majority of the people in the United States are addicted to the drug nicotine naturally found in tobacco. Smoking causes heart disease, stroke, lung disease, diabetes, cancer, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and raises the risk for tuberculosis, immune system disorders, and rheumatoid arthritis. There are more than 16 million Americans who have disease caused by smoking; it also causes 480,000 deaths per year in the country.