SMOKING PREVALENCE AND DETERMINANTS AMONG UNIVERSITY STUDENTS IN CAIRO

Abstract

Background: Tobacco use is the most leading cause of premature morbidity and mortality. Egyptian socio-demographics have changed affecting the smoking profile which may increase the already alarming smoking situation, especially among university students. This also may delay the governmental efforts to control and decrease the smoking rates. Objectives: This study aimed to: 1) Measure the prevalence of smoking among sample of undergraduate students from selected universities in Cairo. 2) Identify the characteristics associated with smoking among university students. Design: Descriptive Cross-sectional study was held to assess the prevalence and characteristics of smokers among university students in Cairo. Setting: The study was held at Governmental and Private Universities, in Cairo Governorate (Egypt) during the academic year 2018-2019. Subjects and method: A cross-sectional survey was held among convenience sample of 2672 undergraduate university students at Governmental and Private Universities, in Cairo Governorate (Egypt). Data were collected from September 2018 to February 2019. Self-administered questionnaire with 20 questions was developed to assess the prevalence and sociodemographic characteristics associated with smoking among university students. Results: The prevalence of smoking among the University students’ sample was 24.2%. Shisha and electronic cigarettes were the most common consumed tobacco products among smokers and ex-smokers of the studied sample. The characteristics which significantly associated with tobacco products consumption included male gender, Private Universities and theoretical faculties in addition to high mother’s educational level. Conclusion: The popularity of smoking shisha and electronic cigarettes delay the governmental efforts to control the smoking epidemic.