Every year, several thousand new conscripts begin their first service in various recruiting camps around the country. National shop steward in the Armed Forces Anette Hyldmo experiences that many of the newcomers start sniffing after they join the Armed Forces.
– Without us wanting it, the first-time service in particular becomes almost a kind of recruitment arena for snus use, Hyldmo says to TV 2.
In addition to the soldiers who have recently started, Hyldmo points out that those who have already sniffed before tend to increase consumption further in the military.
Did not feel pressure
In January, Jesper Furuheim (20) graduated from the GSV hunting battalion in the Armed Forces. During his time in the first service, he quickly became one of those who used snus.
– I had not sniffed anything from before, nor did it take more than a week or two before I started myself, says Furuheim.
– FIRST SERVICE: Jesper Furuheim started sniffing during his time in the Armed Forces. Photo: Private
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Furuheim ended up in a room where over half of the soldiers were sniffing. This meant that it was not always as easy to avoid. Especially when you received the offer repeatedly during a day.
Still, he emphasizes that he never felt pressured to start.
– It was actually a separate initiative. I had no plans to start sniffing, but when I was first introduced it was a short way to bad habit and addiction, says Furuheim.
He talks about long working days that could be difficult and demanding at times.
– For me, snus was almost like a little joy in everyday life, says Furuheim to TV 2.
– LONG DAYS: Snus became an upswing in everyday life, says Jesper. Photo: Private
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“Gutta-greie”
Furuheim believes that the “snuff trend” in the first-time service is a result of several things. He makes no secret of the fact that he thinks it may be related to soldiers trying to create an image.
– It sounds completely stupid, but you might think it was a bit cool, it was also such a “guys thing”, says Furuheim.
He believes the notion that it is cool originates from soldiers in war movies, who use snus and other tobacco.
– I still sniff, but not near as much now as I did when I was in the Armed Forces. In there I could sniff up a box a day, and it sounds completely crazy, he says.
Sniffs before arrival
Although Jesper was among those who started with snus after that he entered the first service, there are many who come in with the snuff box in his pocket already, according to Lieutenant Colonel Grete Thorsby in the Defense Staff.
– Most of those who enter first-time service sniff even before they start their service in the Armed Forces, she says.
Thorsby nevertheless points out that the trend in the past has been that many people get a taste of snus first in the Armed Forces. It has been related to being influenced by both fellow soldiers and commanders, she says.
– Stress and heavy work
According to Statistics Norway (SSB), 15 per cent of the Norwegian population use snus daily.
In the conscription survey in 2018, three out of ten stated that they used snus. As many as 82 per cent of these used snus before they started in the Armed Forces, and eight per cent who started using snus after they began their service in the Armed Forces.
The Armed Forces currently has no recent figures on the number of snus users inside the camps. Nevertheless, national union representative Hyldmo believes that there is a solid majority of both soldiers and other employees who use snus.
Hyldmo believes that the high consumption can be due to several things. Still, there is one reason in particular she thinks is more weighty.
– In the Armed Forces, there is a lot of stress and heavy work. This makes them appreciate the little rest they have. Then snus becomes an easy piece of welfare you have to look forward to. In addition to the fact that there will be a common thing around it, says Hyldmo.
She points out that availability helps to make the threshold for sniffing even lower. There is always someone who has a snuff box lying on the table or in their pocket, she says.
Will not ban
The union election scheme (TVO) does not want to ban snus use in the Armed Forces, but believes they should take a stand anyway.
– TRUSTEE: Anette Hyldmo. Photo: Håvard Madsbakken
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– It is and has always been a difficult case. It is a legal product and therefore unreasonable to ban it. We do not want the first-time service to be a recruitment arena for snus, but we understand that it is addictive. We can therefore neither demand nor ask the soldiers to stop, says Hyldmo.
Previously, TVO and the Armed Forces have tried to launch an attitude campaign. This meant that all recruits received information leaflets and a brief on the harmful effects of snus use.
In addition, the shop stewards hung up posters around the camps, where they warned against tobacco use and introduced so-called “snuff-free zones”.
Among other things, there was a ban on the use of snus in both the sports buildings, the cinema hall and the teaching premises.
– Recently we have been out at the camps and seen that several of the posters were taken down. We experienced that the few posters that continued to hang were overlooked by both employees and soldiers, says Hyldmo.
She emphasizes that the employees are important role models for the conscripts, and that when they do not take the posters seriously, it obviously has a contagious effect on the younger ones.
At present, no active measures are being taken with other measures that could have helped to reduce snus consumption inside the camps. Hyldmo explains this by saying that there was so little impact on the previous project.
Possible increased risk
Doctor and researcher in the Armed Forces’ sanitation, Tuva Steinberg, does not have data on whether the incidence of snus use is more widespread in the Armed Forces than other professions. Nevertheless, she points to a possible causal connection with the use of snus and cold weather injuries.
According to The Armed Forces’ websites There are several departments that initially have challenges with so-called cold weather injuries. These are injuries that occur in cold weather
– We know that snus causes the blood vessels to constrict and that snus is ten times more potent than what smoke is when it comes to this effect on the blood vessels, Steinberg says.
If you have reduced blood supply to the skin for various reasons, it could be a poorer starting point in terms of the risk of frostbite. Nevertheless, no direct connection can be concluded between snus consumption and cold weather damage.
Steinberg tells TV 2 that they are currently running an ongoing research project, where they look at different types of risk factors for frostbite and frostbite.
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