Academics

James Bond Movies Depicts Health Dangers, Says NZ University Professor

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Smoking is a lifestyle that millions of people enjoy around the world. But this kind of lifestyle is beginning to be a cause of concern for some health campaigners. It seems that there is a link between movies and teens taking up smoking.

According to a recent study, smoking is featured in all James Bond movies except one. And it seems even the 007 star is exposed to second hand smoke. Professor Nick Wilson, the author of the study and a teacher at the Otago University in New Zealand, says that there is a related trend in the movie franchise because of its popularity. From a public health perspective, Wilson says it remains problematic.

Smoking in the James Bond films has been depicted since 1962. And since the franchise is considerably one of the longest running series of films, it has an audience it can influence, as reported by The Irish Mirror.

In the 1960s, Bond's smoking was at its highest. He smoked a cigarette for about 83 percent of the films in that decade, according to the study, published Jan. 16 in the journal Tobacco Control. Researchers on the study have found that this lifestyle is evident the 24 Bond films by Eon Productions, from 1962 until "Spectre" (2015). When James Bond lit his last cigarette in "Die Another Day" in 2002, they saw a decline in the numbers.

Further into the study, 007 is reportedly smoking on average within 20 minutes from the start of the movie. And if Bond is not smoking, his female partners are exposing him to second hand smoke. And if none of the major characters are smoking, other characters are. It is only in "Casino Royale" (2006) that smoking was not present.

Wilson also adds that regardless of how physically fit James bond is in the films, he still drinks a lot of alcohol and endangers himself when driving.

Watch this "Spectre" trailer below and see if you can spot a character smoking:

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