%0 Journal Article
%T Psychosocial Determinants of Tobacco Use among School Going Adolescents in Delhi, India
%A Varun Kumar
%A Richa Talwar
%A Neelam Roy
%A Deepak Raut
%A Saudan Singh
%J Journal of Addiction
%D 2014
%I Hindawi Publishing Corporation
%R 10.1155/2014/170941
%X Background. Tobacco use is one of the major preventable causes of premature death and disease in the world. Many psychosocial factors were found to influence tobacco use. Therefore the present study was designed to determine the role of psychosocial factors associated with tobacco use among school going adolescents in Delhi, India. Methods. Cross-sectional study was conducted from February 2013 to September 2013 in four government schools in South district of Delhi, India. The questionnaire contains questions adapted from GYTS (Global Youth Tobacco Survey) to find the prevalence and pattern of tobacco use among adolescents. Data were analyzed using SPSS version 21. Results. The prevalence of ever and current tobacco use was found in 16.4% and 13.1%. Current smoking and current tobacco chewing were found in 10.2% and 9.4% students, respectively. The risk of current tobacco use was found to be higher among males ( value = 0.000) and in those who got higher pocket money ( value = 0.000). Psychosocial factors like lower general self-efficacy and maladjustments with peers, teachers, and schools were also found to be significant predictors of current tobacco use. Conclusion. The study has revealed higher prevalence of ever and current tobacco use among adolescent students in Delhi, India. 1. Introduction Tobacco use is one of the major preventable causes of premature death and disease in the world [1]. A disproportionate share of the global tobacco burden falls on developing countries, where 84% of 1.3 billion current smokers reside. Nearly 70% of the world¡¯s smokers live in low and middle-income countries [2]. The World Health Organization (WHO) attributes approximately 5 million deaths a year to tobacco. The number is expected to exceed 10 million deaths by 2020, with approximately 70% of these deaths occurring in developing countries [3]. India is the second largest consumer of tobacco in the world. The tobacco situation in India is unique because of a vast spectrum of tobacco products available for smoking as well as smokeless use. The early age of initiation underscores the urgent need to intervene and protect this vulnerable group from falling prey to this addiction. In India alone, nearly 1 in 10 adolescents in the age group 13¨C15£¿yr have ever smoked cigarettes and almost half of these report initiating tobacco use before 10£¿yr of age. Addiction to tobacco and harmful nontobacco products by youth is assuming alarming proportion in India [4]. Recent studies have found that tobacco use is increasing among school children in India and a sizeable
%U http://www.hindawi.com/journals/jad/2014/170941/