Until the mid-20th century, advertising was unregulated, and Tobacco companies perfectly exploited this flaw in the advertisements. They featured doctors and health experts in their ads who endorsed smoking. They used physicians and athletes to vouch for their products. They also depicted that cigarettes could help smokers lose weight and ease the symptoms of asthma.
Some tobacco companies also incorporated infants in their advertisements. They used babies to communicate the calming nature of its product, appeal to women, and reinforce smoking’s respectability as a part of everyday family life.
Here below are some vintage cigarette ads that show how Tobacco companies used children to sell their products.
