The problem of the prevalence of smoking habit among adolescent girls

Abstract

Today, smoking remains an urgent social and medical problem, a proven cause of many serious diseases (cancer, cardiovascular, respiratory, dental, etc.), and can have serious consequences for the reproductive system and fertility, disability and premature death, which humanity is able to prevent. The issue of the prevalence of smoking habits, especially among adolescent girls, remains relevant.

The aim is to study the prevalence of smoking habits among adolescent girls.

Materials and methods. An anonymous survey of 280 adolescent girls aged 18 to 24 years was conducted. The questions of the questionnaire were aimed at identifying the presence of a bad habit, the type of smoking, as well as finding out the age of initiation of smoking, the number of cigarettes smoked by the respondent, the reasons that prompted the start of smoking, awareness of the harmful effects on the human body, etc.

Results. Among all participants in the anonymous survey, 40.8±2.8% identified themselves as daily regular smokers. Another 14.6±1.8% of respondents indicated that they smoke from time to time. In addition, 21.5±2.3% of respondents admitted that they had tried to smoke at least once. It should be noted that only 23.1±2.1% of respondents have never smoked at all. Among the surveyed adolescent girls with a harmful habit, the majority indicated that they regularly use modern (alternative) types of smoking, namely 76.1±4.3%, which was 3.8 times more than the respondents who regularly smoke traditional cigarettes, respectively - 20.2±1.7% (p<0.05). The analysis of preferences for different modern types of smoking among those who use them showed that 32.5±2.8% smoke electronic cigarettes (VAPE) and 43.6±3.1% prefer tobacco heating systems (IQOS). A detailed analysis of the respondents' answers revealed that women mostly have a smoking history of 1 to 3 years - 46.7±4.1% and 3 to 5 years - 36.8±3.2% of respondents. In addition, it was found that 14.8±1.8% of girls reported smoking experience of up to 1 year. Only 1.7±0.2% of respondents reported smoking for more than 5 years.

Conclusions. The results of the study indicate a high prevalence of the harmful habit among adolescent girls. Important reasons for starting to smoke are the presence of smokers in the immediate environment (family, friends), which is a negative example, and a high risk of passive smoking. Advertising, stressful situations, and emotional stress also contribute to the emergence of a bad habit among respondents. At the same time, a significant number of respondents are aware of the harmful effects of smoking and have a desire to get rid of the habit.

The research was carried out in accordance with the principles of the Declaration of Helsinki. The research protocol was approved by the Local Ethics Committee of the institution mentioned in the work. Informed consent of the women was obtained for the research.

The authors declare no conflict of interest.