Correlates of secondhand smoke exposure among nonsmoking youth (15–24 years) in India: Secondary analysis from Global Adult Tobacco Survey, 2009–10

INTRODUCTION: Nonsmoking youth form a high-risk group and are at increased risk of ill-effects caused due to secondhand smoke (SHS). The objective is to determine the prevalence and correlates of SHS exposure among the nonsmoking youth in India from global adult tobacco survey (GATS), 2009–10. METHODS: Secondary data analysis of GATS, 2009–10 was done to find the correlates of SHS at three different settings – house, workplace - indoor, and public place. All the sociodemographic variables were tested for association with SHS exposure using multivariate analysis. Prevalence ratio with 95% confidence interval [CI] was used to report the risk. RESULTS: The prevalence of SHS was 48.6% (95% CI: 47.7%–49.5%) at house, 25.5% (95% CI: 23.5%–27.6%) at workplace - indoors, and 42.7% (95% CI: 41.7%–43.7%) at public places. SHS exposure among females was found to be higher at house; youth living in rural area were found at increased risk to SHS at both household and public places; and inverse relationship was seen between SHS exposure and education level at both household and workplace - indoors. Overall, the study showed that smokeless tobacco users were at increased risk of SHS exposure at all the three settings. CONCLUSION: Being female, living in rural area, lower education status, lower socioeconomic status, and use of smokeless tobacco were found to be associated with SHS exposure among nonsmoking youth in India.