(TIME) Any American who has bought a pack of cigarettes since the mid-'60s might have seen the health warnings. One of the first, quaint and timid, said, “Cigarette Smoking May Be Hazardous to Your Health.”
By comparison, last year I bought a scary pack of Lucky Strikes that I keep in the freezer for Don Draper-esque emergencies. It says, “SURGEON GENERAL'S WARNING: Smoking Causes Lung Cancer, Heart Disease, Emphysema, And May Complicate Pregnancy.”
Such government warnings work, sort of -- research has shown that smokers in countries with strong warnings are more knowledgeable about smoking risks than those in countries where warnings are weaker. But it's unclear whether smokers who see any warning actually smoke less.
Public-health advocates have known for years that individualized messages are far more effective at getting smokers to stop. More
