https://boards.hellobee.com/ Pregnancy, Baby and Parenting blog, by Hellobee en Tue, 26 May 2026 07:32:32 +0000 https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/explaining-smoking-to-a-toddler#post-2537359 Fri, 29 Apr 2016 17:47:37 +0000 JerricaBenton 2537359@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Haven't dealt with it yet but I'd tell her it was a bad habit that can make people sick and leave it at that. We've talked about bad habits in regards to biting your nails and stuff like that so I think she would get that. I'd never want her to tell an adult off about smoking (or anything else) so I try not to use language that I wouldn't want her to repeat. I'd probably laugh in the moment though. Maybe I'm wrong but I'm not too worried about her smoking. We don't smoke, grandparents, family, friends don't either. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/explaining-smoking-to-a-toddler#post-2537345 Fri, 29 Apr 2016 17:29:08 +0000 Finfan 2537345@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I would probably have just ignored it. And I loathe smoking. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/explaining-smoking-to-a-toddler#post-2536828 Fri, 29 Apr 2016 10:38:58 +0000 yoursilverlining 2536828@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>We have run into this…..and also the follow-up questions, which were harder for me than the initial question.</p> <p>I told LO smoking is very dangerous and very unhealthy for our bodies and hurts our bodies on the inside. I told her it’s something we (our family) doesn’t do because it hurts our bodies and also it stinks.</p> <p>She was fine with that explanation. Then we saw someone smoking and LO was very intent to know WHY another adult would choose to do something that hurt their body. Ugh, that’s a harder question to answer for a 3.5 year old. People make all different choices, some are good, some are bad; we personally want to make good choices for our health, etc. But that one was tougher for me to answer – it’s easy enough to explain addiction and just to understand that people make unhealthy choices every day and choices they know hurt themselves, hard to explain at an appropriate level to a little one. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/explaining-smoking-to-a-toddler#post-2536811 Fri, 29 Apr 2016 10:30:18 +0000 Mama Bird 2536811@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Ugh, not looking forward to that! We have a neighbor who seems to smoke in the hallway - no idea who it is, but I'm always complaining in front of DS that someone stank up the hallway again. So I wish we weren't dealing with that, but on the upside, hopefully DS gets what a smelly unpleasant habit it is before he decides it's cool. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/explaining-smoking-to-a-toddler#post-2536745 Fri, 29 Apr 2016 09:37:22 +0000 Happygal 2536745@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>My first reaction probably would have been to laugh out of shock and the silliness of smoking a toy, to be honest! Like @shizaz: I also pretended to smoke. They sold candy cigarettes back in the day. That was when I was older, but kids all ages seem to enjoy imitating what they see.</p> <p>At 3.5, I wouldn't make a big deal out of it. The most I would say is that smoking isn't good for our health. From my experience, smoking was so vilified that I thought smokers were bad people. And when I learned about how dangerous it was for your health, I was scared and desperate to get loved ones I knew smoked to quit. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/explaining-smoking-to-a-toddler#post-2536736 Fri, 29 Apr 2016 09:20:53 +0000 Truth Bombs 2536736@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>We will stress how unhealthy it is and that it makes you very very sick. But I don't think using words like "disgusting" is appropriate. Surely you know or will encounter someone who smokes. It's an addiction, they aren't disgusting people. My in laws smoke and I HATE it. It has been a big point of contention how much my hubs and I expect them to do to protect our kids from the smoke. So far they have never smoked in front of the kids but I'm sure as they get older they'll see it eventually. I would never want to tell them that their grandparents (or anyone else who smokes) is disgusting. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/explaining-smoking-to-a-toddler#post-2536728 Fri, 29 Apr 2016 09:06:47 +0000 Umbreon 2536728@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I don't have kids so I don't have experience handling the situation, but I wanted to say that I remember pretending to smoke with crayons with a friend of mine when we were kids (I think maybe 7, so quite older). But I remember one day we were doing that and then we make-believed that my friend got cancer from smoking and was dying. So we definitely knew it was bad and dangerous. </p> <p>So I think you handled the situation the right way. I think as long as she understands it's bad and not a good thing at all, she'll get the message. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/explaining-smoking-to-a-toddler#post-2536723 Fri, 29 Apr 2016 08:56:15 +0000 avivoca 2536723@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>This has not happened yet but I know it is coming. My mom smokes (never around us or the kids, she goes outside) and my MIL smokes a lot, so we will make a big deal about how gross and unhealthy it is. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/explaining-smoking-to-a-toddler#post-2536720 Fri, 29 Apr 2016 08:50:17 +0000 lamariniere 2536720@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>We live in a place where about 50% of the population smokes. I hate it. I have always told him it's gross, we don't do it and it can make you sick. We do have people in the family who smoke and he has friends with parents who smoke. I've said to my son that adults are allowed to do what they want, but it's still bad. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/explaining-smoking-to-a-toddler#post-2536718 Fri, 29 Apr 2016 08:47:58 +0000 Shantuck 2536718@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>My 3.5 year old has asked about it as well and I had a similar reaction. Now when we pass a smoker on the street, he points to the smoker and exclaims "smoking is yucky and unhealthy!" On the first occasion I was a little embarrassed since that is obviously a little rude but now I just chuckle when it happens. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/explaining-smoking-to-a-toddler#post-2536712 Fri, 29 Apr 2016 08:44:52 +0000 LuLu Mom 2536712@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>So it happened, yesterday my 3 1/2 year old pretended to smoke a toy. She says to me "hey look mommy I'm smoking" and I just froze. She's never been around it, I don't know if she's seen anyone do it (unless in passing in a parking lot or something) so I didn't really know how to handle it. I just made a HUGE deal about how gross and dangerous it was and asked her where she learned that. She said a friend at daycare (who I know parents don't smoke either but she's older.) so I just said next time you tell her that smoking is Very dangerous and disgusting so we don't pretend to do it. I was so caught off guard and know I didn't handle it the best. Have you had this situation yet? </p>