Abstract
BackgroundTobacco use during adolescence is a substantial problem and adolescents are at higher risk of addiction and prolonged use. To reduce the burden of tobacco-related morbidity and mortality, monitoring of adolescent tobacco use is imperative. We aimed to determine the prevalence of tobacco use among adolescents in urban and rural secondary schools in Enugu State, southeast Nigeria.MethodsA cross-sectional study of 4332 adolescents in 8th to 10th grades in 25 urban and 24 rural secondary schools in Enugu, Nigeria was done using Global Youth Tobacco Survey (GYTS) methodology. Students were asked about previous and current tobacco use, smoking cessation, and susceptibility to smoking initiation among non-smokers. Geographical, age and sex prevalence differences were examined. Analyses were performed for all adolescents (10–19 years) and for a subset of students, 13–15 years of age for comparison with previous GYTS surveys. All analyses were weighted to account for the complex survey design and for differential non-response at school, class and student levels.ResultsAbout 28.9% of students reported ever smoking cigarettes; 19.4% reported current tobacco use among all adolescents (13.3, 5.8 and 7.8% for cigarettes, other smoked tobacco, and smokeless tobacco, respectively) while 18.6% reported current tobacco use among 13–15 year olds (12.6, 5.2 and 7.5% for cigarettes, other smoked tobacco and smokeless tobacco respectively). Prevalence of all types of tobacco use was higher in rural schools (vs. urban schools), and among boys (vs. girls). Susceptibility to smoking initiation among non-smokers was 9.3% (95% CI: 8.1–10.7) among all adolescents, and 9% (95% CI: 7.6–10.7) among 13–15 year olds. About 88.1% of all adolescent smokers desired to quit and 57.9% of them had never received help to quit smoking.ConclusionsNearly one in every five school-going adolescents currently uses at least one type of tobacco in Enugu State, southeast Nigeria. Prevalence of tobacco use is higher in rural schools and among boys in this setting. Most adolescent current smokers desire to quit and need smoking cessation support.
Highlights
Tobacco use during adolescence is a substantial problem and adolescents are at higher risk of addiction and prolonged use
The objective of this study was to determine the prevalence of tobacco use among adolescents in urban and rural secondary schools in Enugu, southeast Nigeria
The median age of the students was years (14 years in urban schools and years in rural schools) [interquartile range = 2 years]; 43.6% were boys; 28.1% were in Junior Secondary (JS) 2, 36.2% in JS 3 and 35.7% in Senior Secondary (SS) 1
Summary
Tobacco use during adolescence is a substantial problem and adolescents are at higher risk of addiction and prolonged use. Tobacco smoking is a major cause of preventable global mortality, resulting in about 5 million deaths annually [1, 2]. The adverse health effects of tobacco use have been well established [6], and in total, if unabated, the tobacco epidemic is expected to cause one billion deaths in this century [7]. Effective tobacco control measures are crucial to prevent this public health crisis. The tobacco industry targets youth, especially in developing countries, to retain them as lifetime users [14] who will experience prolonged exposure to tobacco and its associated health risks
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