Assessment of knowledge, attitude, and practices and motivation to quit tobacco habits in relation to age and educational status among male tobacco users visiting a Government Dental College Hospital, India

BACKGROUND: Tobacco use has become an epidemic of modern times. Its use is widespread among young adults and those from lower socioeconomic classes. OBJECTIVE: The objective is to assess knowledge, attitude, and practices (KAP) and motivation to quit tobacco habits in relation to age and educational status among male tobacco users visiting a Government Dental College Hospital, India. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This was a questionnaire survey conducted among 199 male adult smokers visiting the Department of Public Health Dentistry in a Government Dental College in India. Quota sampling was used for recruiting the required number of study participants. Information on KAP related to smoking habits was collected using a predesigned structured questionnaire by two trained and calibrated dentists. Knowledge, attitude toward quitting and their self-confidence toward quitting was compared in relation to age and educational status using Chi-square test. RESULTS: A higher percentage of younger adults aged 18–24 years were interested in quitting the habit (100%) compared to those aged 45–64 years (85.2%). Similarly, a higher percentage of young adults have tried quitting the habit (76.9%) compared to their older counterparts (64.8%) (P < 0.05). Knowledge on ill effects of smoking increased with increasing educational attainment (P < 0.001). People with higher educational attainment had observed the warning sign on packaging (73.7%) compared to those with less than primary education (25.9%) and they also reported that the presence of such warning sign motivated them to think about quitting (54.8% vs. 0%) (P < 0.001). CONCLUSION: Knowledge, positive attitude toward quitting and self-confidence to quit were higher among younger adults and those with secondary education compared to their elder counterparts and those with less than primary education.