Association between exposure to different sources of advertising and the use of conventional cigarettes in Peruvian adolescents, 2019

INTRODUCTION: The objective of this study was to evaluate the association between exposure to different sources of tobacco advertising and the consumption of conventional cigarettes in Peruvian adolescents. METHODS: This was a cross-sectional analytical study of secondary data from the Global Youth Tobacco Survey (GYTS) 2019 in Peru. The population consisted of adolescents aged 13–15 years. Generalized Linear Poisson family models were used to estimate prevalence ratios with their 95% confidence intervals (95% CI), which measured the strength of the association between exposure to advertising sources and conventional cigarette consumption. RESULTS: Data from 2083 adolescents who provided information on exposure to television advertising, 1092 on outdoor advertising, and 2008 about online advertising were analyzed. A higher probability of conventional cigarette consumption was noted in those exposed to ads via television (aPR=1.85; 95% CI: 1.28–2.69; p=0.002) and online (aPR=1.90; 95% CI: 1.40–2.58; p<0.001), in comparison with those not exposed. CONCLUSIONS: Tobacco advertising, promotion and sponsorship (TAPS) through television and online media are significantly associated with an increase in the consumption of conventional cigarettes among adolescents aged 13–15 years. Therefore, it is necessary to implement comprehensive bans on TAPS in Peru focused on these media to prevent the tobacco industry from continuing to introduce advertising to encourage tobacco consumption.