Prevalence and Patterns of Active Tobacco Smoking among Youths in Enugu North Senatorial District, Enugu State

Abstract

Tobacco smoking has become a global public health concern, as it is a leading cause of preventable deaths and morbidity. The study assessed prevalence and patterns of active tobacco smoking among youths in Enugu North Senatorial District, Enugu State, Nigeria. The cross-sectional survey research design guided the study. A total number of 600 youths participated.  Data collection was done using Prevalence, Patterns and Associated Factors of Tobacco Smoking Questionnaire (PREPAFTSQ), in which part of it was adapted from Global Youth Tobacco Survey (revised GYTS-R). Frequency, percentage, phi coefficient correlation, chi-square statistics and logistic regression were used for analyses. The findings revealed that the prevalence of active smoking among youths was high (51.3%). The youths reported smoking tobacco mostly in the work places (74.7%), followed by public places (63.4%), and home (63.2%) in the past 30 days. The youths reported not smoking tobacco at all (48.4%) mostly, followed by smoking weekly (39.7%), and smoking daily (12.0%). There were significant association between the patterns of active tobacco smoking among youths and place of residence (χ² = 16.166, p = .000 < .05) and education level (χ² = 13.892, p = .003 < .05). However, Ministry of Health at national and State levels, health programme planners, health educators, and professionals should implement a large-scale public intervention to reduce the rate and hazards of youths being involved and exposed to tobacco smoking and prohibition of smoking in various setting.