Survey of prevalence Non-daily Cigarette Smoking and its predictors in college students in Tabriz city: Web-based Study

Abstract

Background and Objectives: Non-daily smokers experience health risks of smoking much higher than the non-smokers. However, most of them do not consider themselves smokers. This type of smoking has recently been on the rise among the youth, especially students. This study aims to investigate the prevalence of non-daily Smoking (NDS) and its predictors among Iranian students. Methodology: This web-based, cross-sectional study was conducted in Tabriz, Iran, from July to August, 2019. In total, 3666 students were randomly selected from all the universities in Tabriz in proportion to the number of students in each university. The required data were collected by an online questionnaire. NDS predictors were assessed using logistic regression model. Results: The results showed that 15.7% of the students were daily smokers and 7.8% were non-daily smokers. Non-daily smokers were more likely than the non-smokers to present high-risk behaviors such as substance abuse (OR=2.96, CI 95%: 2.12-4.13), alcohol consumption (OR=2.54, CI 95%: 1.78-3.62), and experience of hookah smoking (OR=9.30, CI 95%: 6.06-14.25) and its regular use (OR=24.22, CI 95%: 14.86-39.46). Multiple logistic regression results indicated that the NDS predictors are sex of female (OR=6.25, CI 95%: 4.57-10.14), denying being a smoker (OR=11.69, CI 95%: 6.86-19.91), not being addicted to nicotine (OR=10.02, CI 95%: 4.21-23.85), and not intending to quit smoking in the coming months (OR = 2.27, CI 95%: 1.28-4.04). Conclusion: Non-daily smokers, due to their characteristics such as not considering themselves as smokers, not intending to quit smoking, and showing high-risk behaviors, should receive more attention by health policy makers in smoking control and cessation programs. Keywords: Risk-taking behaviors; Non-daily Smoking; Daily smoking; Hookah use; Substance abuse