Prevalence of smoking among male secondary school students in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia

OBJECTIVES: This study was conducted to examine the prevalence of smoking and habits of smoking among male secondary school students in Jeddah, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) and to assess their knowledge and attitudes toward it. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A cross-sectional study was conducted in Jeddah, using a two-stage cluster sampling, randomly selecting 4 out of 85 government male secondary schools. Data were obtained through a self-administered questionnaire eliciting responses to questions on personal background, smoking behavior, knowledge, behavior, and attitude toward smoking. A total of 695 students responded to the questionnaires with 87.4% response rate. RESULTS: Of the studied group, 258 (37%) currently smoked, and of these, 83.7% had started smoking at the age of 14 years or less. The most common reason for smoking was the influence of family, especially the presence of someone at home who smoked (65, 9%) and friends who smoked (42.5%). Many of the students search for information on the risks of smoking (66.3%), and only (45.3%) knew about the bad effects of passive smoking on others. Two-third of the students who smoked wanted to quit smoking (63.2%), especially if suitable help was offered, whereas (60.9%) had tried to quit. While 50% of students smoked for recreation and entertainment, and (33.6%) had difficulty avoiding smoking in no smoking areas. CONCLUSION: A well-planned integrated antismoking campaign is urgently required, especially among students and teachers. The study revealed that the prevalence of smoking was high. This will contribute to an increase in smoking-related health problems in the future if proper preventive measures are not taken.