Tobacco use among adolescents in Riyadh Saudi Arabia
-
AbdulKarim S. Al-Makadma
,
Sarah Dobson
Abstract
Background: Initiation of smoking behavior during adolescence is associated with negative health outcomes. Understanding initiation of smoking behavior in adolescents in relation to other behavioral, health, and environmental factors is essential for effective behavioral modification.
Objective: The aim of this study was to describe tobacco use behaviors among adolescents in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, and related demographic and social factors.
Subjects: A total of 1430 students aged 14–19 from high schools across the city of Riyadh participated in the study.
Methods: A comprehensive adolescent health survey was administered to students in high school classrooms across Riyadh. Data were analyzed primarily via contingency tables with χ2-tests.
Results: One in five students reported having ever smoked cigarettes, with a significantly higher proportion of boys than girls reporting tobacco use. Students who smoked had significantly lower school connectedness compared with those who never smoked. Tobacco use by family members was common, and students with at least one family member who smoked were significantly more likely to use tobacco themselves.
Conclusion: Improving school connectedness among students by fostering supportive and safe school environments could be a potential strategy for reducing adolescent smoking. Reducing smoking in the general population and educating families about being better role models for youth are also critical.
References
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©2015 by De Gruyter
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Articles in the same Issue
- Frontmatter
- Editorial
- Sleeping while driving
- Review
- The contribution of fat-free mass to resting energy expenditure: implications for weight loss strategies in the treatment of adolescent obesity
- Original Articles
- Gender comparisons of adolescents’ anthropometry and blood pressure in Osun State, South-Western Nigeria
- Perceived social support and parental education as determinants of adolescents’ physical activity and eating behaviour: a cross-sectional survey
- Educational intervention for parents of adolescents with chronic illness: a pre-post test pilot study
- Clinic attendance and health outcomes of youth with type 2 diabetes mellitus
- Congruence in reported frequency of parent-adolescent sexual health communication: A study from Mexico
- Knowledge and awareness of HIV/AIDS among students of a technical institution
- Prevalence of cigarette and water pipe smoking and their predictors among Iranian adolescents
- Socio-demographic and dietary factors associated with obesity among female university students in Jordan
- Difference in mental state between Internet-addicted and non-addicted Japanese undergraduates
- Dental aesthetics perception and eating behavior in adolescence
- Multiple sexual partnerships among female adolescents in rural Uganda: the effects of family structure and school attendance
- Substance use avoidance among Iranian male adolescents: a comparison of three versions of the theory of reasoned action
- Nutrition intake and physical activity in a middle school in New York City
- Sleep in university students across years of university education and gender influences
- Case Reports
- Delayed diagnosis of trichobezoar in a patient with presumed anorexia nervosa
- Atrial fibrillation in a healthy adolescent after heavy smoking of contraband cigarettes
- Short Communication
- Tobacco use among adolescents in Riyadh Saudi Arabia
