Teens from across southwestern Ontario have developed a plan to protest movies that glamorize smoking.

Youth representatives from health units throughout the region met in London on the weekend to discuss their concerns about smoking in movies.

They will be urging the Ontario Film Review Board to consider each film's depiction of tobacco use when issuing its classified movie ratings.

Donna Kosmack, a youth development specialist with the Middlesex-London Health Unit, said smoking among teens remains a major concern.

And the more that young people see actors smoking cigarettes, the more they think it's a normal thing to do, she said.

One American health group says The Curious Case of Benjamin Button has more than 100 incidents of smoking, far more than necessary, even for a movie set in a time when more people smoked.

"Obviously it is a major concern. And half of the people that do use them [cigarettes], end up passing way," Kosmack said.

The teens also sent a request to the film board asking for public service announcements about the dangers of smoking to run before movies that show tobacco use.

"And there is research to show that if you do see a PSA before watching the movie, the effect of seeing the tobacco in the movie is counteracted," Kosmack said.

The Ontario Film Review Board has agreed to meet with the youth representatives to discuss their concerns, she said.

New York state health officials have also urged stricter ratings on films with smoking. Last summer Disney agreed to eliminate smoking from its family-oriented movies.

With files from CBC's Gary Ennett