On 6th February, the students of Grade 8 had an informative and enlightening session with Dr Shalini Thakur. Her areas of expertise include Oral Onco Surgery and Rehabilitation in the Head and Neck Surgical Oncology Department, HCG Cancer Centre. Her secondary interest lies in interdisciplinary rehabilitation of head and neck patients and tobacco cessation. She spoke about how most tobacco companies target adolescents, as they are the most vulnerable in teenage years. She described nicotine as classified poison, as it is not only addictive, but also results in mood disorders, permanent lowering of impulse control and lowered attention span and aptitude for learning. The session was very interactive, with some interesting questions asked from the students’ side. Dr Shalini went on to explain how necessary it is that we not only stay away from tobacco and nicotine, but we also guard our family, friends and loved ones from the pitfalls of both. We all took a pledge to never fall prey to the ill-effects of tobacco use.
