Number of CNY high school smokers increases

For the first time in nearly 15 years the number of high school students lighting up in New York State is on the rise. Between 2007 and 2009, the percentage of students smoking went up 1 percent, according to a report by Excellus BlueCross Blue Shield. While the current rate of smokers in high school remains lower than the rate in 1997, it has begun to creep back up despite the variety of efforts designed to keep young people away from cigarettes. Jason Warchal, a Community Mission Manager for the American Cancer Society, says tobacco companies are targeting the younger crowd. "A lot of the advertising looks like candy. It's very hard to tell the difference," he said. Savannah Heatch, for example, says she's been a smoker for three years. She started at age 13 and says she learned the habit from "the crowd I hung out with, like my friends and being around the wrong people."