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'Smoking baby' quits his 40 sticks a day habit after therapy
by Neelam Goswami - September 3, 2010
The kid, named Aldi Rizal, is just a two-year-old boy, but was already addicted to smoking, puffing away 40 cigarettes a day.
Rizal astounded the world in May when a disturbing video featuring him puffing casually on a cigarette made rounds on the internet.
The shocking video that circulated the Internet in May caused a firestorm online, drawing the worldwide attention to the extreme of a disturbing trend in Indonesia and the country’s failure to regulate the tobacco industry.
Smoking baby kicked the nasty habit
It has been reported that little Rizal, who threw violent tantrums if he was not allowed to puff, has kicked his two-pack-a-day nicotine habit after a month-long rehab program.
"He has quit smoking and the most important thing is he doesn't ask for cigarettes anymore," AFP quoted national commission for child protection secretary-general Arist Merdeka Sirait as saying.
The 60-pound 30-month-old boy began smoking at 11 months when his father gave him a cigarette, which later developed into a disturbing two-pack-a-day habit.
Smoking habit redirected to playing
Rizal has been under the care of the National Commission on Child Protection since July and is receiving psychological therapy that has redirected his addiction to playing, Sirait said.
"He received psychosocial therapy for one month, during which therapists kept him busy with activities and encouraged him to play with kids of the same age," Sirait said.
"We diverted his addiction from cigarettes to playing."
While the toddler is given a wide range of activities, including playing and drawing, his 26-year-old mother, Diana, was reportedly given parenting classes.
Rizal is a happy boy now
"Ardi was very happy when he left Jakarta this morning as he has really missed his father in the village," Sirait said.
Also, Seto Mulyadi, chairman of the National Commission for Child Protection who took the child into his own home as part of rehabilitation efforts, told the Jakarta Globe that the toddler had fully beat out his smoking addiction.
"He is happy and now he can play just like other children of his age — he can laugh," USAToday reported Seto as telling Globe.
Bizarre story of smoking toddler
Rizal, who lives in a fishing village Musi Banyuasin, Indonesia, became famous after a video of him chain smoking cigarettes went viral, showing him on local as well as on international television.
The boy was given his first cigarette by his 30-year-old fishmonger father, Mohammed.
In May, the video showing Rizal puffing away was posted by Britain's Sun newspaper on its website. The footage, still available online, shows the kid reclining with a cigarette in his mouth.
He blows smoke rings, and then draws back deeply on the cigarette; he doesn’t even cough. At one point the kid is even shown turning the cigarette around like he is going to stick the burning tip on his tongue.
Rizal’s mom acknowledged at the time that her toddler son is totally addicted and gets angry, screams and batters his head against the wall if not allowed to smoke.
The boy’s father, however, seemed unconcerned with his disturbing habit, saying he does not see the issue as a problem, and believes his son is quite healthy.
The sad and bizarre story of the tubby smoking toddler that instantly went viral online showcased the extreme of a disturbing trend in Indonesia.
After a month of play therapy he's cured!!
Gimme a break!
"He has quit smoking and the most important thing is he doesn't ask for cigarettes anymore"
Maybe he's found SNUS!!
'Smoking baby' quits his 40 sticks a day habit after therapy
by Neelam Goswami - September 3, 2010
Rizal has been under the care of the National Commission
on Child Protection since July and is receiving psychological
therapy that has redirected his addiction to playing.
on Child Protection since July and is receiving psychological
therapy that has redirected his addiction to playing.
The kid, named Aldi Rizal, is just a two-year-old boy, but was already addicted to smoking, puffing away 40 cigarettes a day.
Rizal astounded the world in May when a disturbing video featuring him puffing casually on a cigarette made rounds on the internet.
The shocking video that circulated the Internet in May caused a firestorm online, drawing the worldwide attention to the extreme of a disturbing trend in Indonesia and the country’s failure to regulate the tobacco industry.
Smoking baby kicked the nasty habit
It has been reported that little Rizal, who threw violent tantrums if he was not allowed to puff, has kicked his two-pack-a-day nicotine habit after a month-long rehab program.
"He has quit smoking and the most important thing is he doesn't ask for cigarettes anymore," AFP quoted national commission for child protection secretary-general Arist Merdeka Sirait as saying.
The 60-pound 30-month-old boy began smoking at 11 months when his father gave him a cigarette, which later developed into a disturbing two-pack-a-day habit.
Smoking habit redirected to playing
Rizal has been under the care of the National Commission on Child Protection since July and is receiving psychological therapy that has redirected his addiction to playing, Sirait said.
"He received psychosocial therapy for one month, during which therapists kept him busy with activities and encouraged him to play with kids of the same age," Sirait said.
"We diverted his addiction from cigarettes to playing."
While the toddler is given a wide range of activities, including playing and drawing, his 26-year-old mother, Diana, was reportedly given parenting classes.
Rizal is a happy boy now
"Ardi was very happy when he left Jakarta this morning as he has really missed his father in the village," Sirait said.
Also, Seto Mulyadi, chairman of the National Commission for Child Protection who took the child into his own home as part of rehabilitation efforts, told the Jakarta Globe that the toddler had fully beat out his smoking addiction.
"He is happy and now he can play just like other children of his age — he can laugh," USAToday reported Seto as telling Globe.
Bizarre story of smoking toddler
Rizal, who lives in a fishing village Musi Banyuasin, Indonesia, became famous after a video of him chain smoking cigarettes went viral, showing him on local as well as on international television.
The boy was given his first cigarette by his 30-year-old fishmonger father, Mohammed.
In May, the video showing Rizal puffing away was posted by Britain's Sun newspaper on its website. The footage, still available online, shows the kid reclining with a cigarette in his mouth.
He blows smoke rings, and then draws back deeply on the cigarette; he doesn’t even cough. At one point the kid is even shown turning the cigarette around like he is going to stick the burning tip on his tongue.
Rizal’s mom acknowledged at the time that her toddler son is totally addicted and gets angry, screams and batters his head against the wall if not allowed to smoke.
The boy’s father, however, seemed unconcerned with his disturbing habit, saying he does not see the issue as a problem, and believes his son is quite healthy.
The sad and bizarre story of the tubby smoking toddler that instantly went viral online showcased the extreme of a disturbing trend in Indonesia.
After a month of play therapy he's cured!!
Gimme a break!
"He has quit smoking and the most important thing is he doesn't ask for cigarettes anymore"
Maybe he's found SNUS!!
No longer acceptable for today's society of laissez-faires (unless you can tax it to death!!).
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