Romanian students’ attitude and opinion about the smoke-free indoors law

Abstract

Abstract The Romanian Parliament approved the first piece of legislation regarding smoking in public places in 2002; smoking was banned in most indoors but allowed in bars and restaurants. The law has been amended several times; the 2016 amendment banned smoking in nearly all indoor public spaces, in indoor workplaces, in playgrounds and on public transport; there are only two exceptions to the law - cells in maximum security prisons and designated rooms in the transit areas of international airports. In this context, we asked 498 students (in Law, Business Administration, Electronics, Languages, Sciences, Medicine, Dentistry, Pharmacy or Nursing), aged 21.93 ± 4.21 years, males and females, to answer a 23-item questionnaire on cigarettes smoking; the questionnaire included seven questions related to the Romanian smoke-free indoors law. A number of 131 students (26.3%) are cigarettes-smokers; there are statistically significant differences among the faculties subgroups (p < 0.01), the highest percent of smokers being in Dentistry (50%) and the lowest - in Languages (13%). Most of the students (N = 466 - 93.6%) agree with the smoke-free indoors law; the disagreement is registered among the smokers (27 vs. 5 non-smokers, p < 0.001). A number of 360 subjects (72.29%) mention they met situations of smoking in public places: in bars/clubs/restaurants (73.3%), staircases of blocks of flats (56.1%), public transport or taxis (44.1%), even hospitals (8.3%) and classrooms (7.7%). In 75.8% out of these situations nobody took attitude; 40 students (11.1%) acted themselves and drew attention (most often successfully) to the smokers about breaking the law. One fifth of the smokers of the group have also smoked/intended to smoke in public places; most of them are students in Electronics and just one - in Law (p < 0.05). Romanian students seem to be content with the ban of indoor smoking. Actions to reduce consumption of tobacco products and to protect public health have to be continued. Key messages Romanian young people seem to be content with the decrease of second hand smoke in indoor public spaces. Intense actions to combat the tobacco epidemic are still needed in Romania.