Tobacco Use among the Adolescents in Kalanki, Kathmandu, Nepal

Abstract

Tobacco use among the adolescents is a growing public health problem and a great concern all over the world. The past evidence suggests that the pattern of tobacco use varies with respect to different factors. Therefore, this study was embarked on ‘to study the pattern of tobacco use among the adolescents and the factors related to tobacco use in the International College, Nepal’. A descriptive cross-sectional study conducted among the 380 (314 adolescents currently smoked and 66 were non-smokers) under-graduate and graduate students between the age of 18-24 of one of the International college, Nepal. Interview with semi-structured questionnaire was used to collect the data during Februarytill March 2014. The study revealed that the number of current smokers was high using burning tobacco. Socio-demographic factors like age, sex, gender and environmental factors like tobacco user among family, friends, tobacco availability, and price of tobacco were the independent factors. Both socio-demographic factors and environmental factors influenced the pattern of tobacco use which was divided as the types, amount and frequency of the tobacco use. The independent factors like age, sex, tobacco users among family, friends were the factors that were associated with pattern of tobacco use. P-value 0.05 was used as a reference to show the association between the socio-demographic and environmental factors and pattern of tobacco use using Chi-square. Study findings were consistent with the previous findings of the different reports. However, some of the findings have drastically changed. The personal factors and the surrounding factors seem to influence the use of tobacco among the respondent. Recommendation for this study would be preventive measures like school awareness programs, anti-tobacco campaigns, increasing tax, dissuading messages need to be promoted.