Publication:

Knowledge, attitude and practice of cigarette smoking among university students in Muzaffarabad, Pakistan: a cross-sectional study

Background Smoking is the leading cause of morbidity and mortality worldwide. Smoking killed more than 6 million people, about 80% in the developing countries such as Pakistan in 2011. Now it has become major public health issue in the world.

Methods A descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted among 542 students at University of Azad Jammu and Kashmir in Muzaffarabad, Pakistan from July to December 2015. The data were collected using a pre-tested, self-administered, validated questionnaire requiring information about socio-demographic characteristics, practice and patterns of cigarette smoking, knowledge about its harmful effects and attitude towards smoking control and prevention measures.

Results The prevalence of cigarette smoking among students was 49.5%. The mean age for starting cigarette smoking was 19.2±2.73 years. Cigarette smoking constituted 61.3% and shisha constituted 18.4%. The main reason for cigarette smoking was peer pressure (35.0%) followed by family influencing (24.5%). About 79.5% of the smokers had intension to quit smoking. There was no significant difference (p value=0.484) between prevalence of cigarette smoking in different faculties of University of Azad Jammu and Kashmir. The majority of the students (84.3%) knew that smoking is harmful for their health. However, rates of non-smoking students who knew the adverse effects of smoking were significantly higher than that of students who smoke. A high rate of students showed positive attitude towards smoking prevention and control measures.

Conclusions High prevalence of cigarette smoking was reported among students. There is a need to implement an anti-smoking program among students at University of Azad Jammu and Kashmir.