Of the various drugs abused, the most widely distributed and commonly used drug in the world is ‘tobacco’. A study titled “Prevalence of Tobacco Consumption in School Going Adolescent Boys in Urban Slum of Mumbai”, conducted by doctors of R N Cooper Hospital, has found that one in every sixth child in Mumbai has been consuming tobacco.
A total of 183 students studying in Class VIII-X participated in the study and their mean age was 15 years.
Interestingly, the report says, more prevalence of tobacco use was found in children whose father had pursued higher education.
The study found the prevalence of tobacco use at 17.5 per cent. Overall, smokeless tobacco use was higher than smoking. Gutkha was the most common form of tobacco used, followed by cigarettes, khaini, beedi and masheri.
It was observed that 6.6 per cent of the respondents were regular users and 6 per cent were occasional users. While 2.2 per cent were found to be past users, 2.5 per cent were experimental users. There was an increase in the prevalence of tobacco use with the increase in age up to 15 year.
Nearly 45 per cent of the respondents who smoked bought tobacco themselves, followed by 35 per cent who got tobacco from friends and 20 per cent who took tobacco from their parents or siblings.
The report says many social, economic and political factors have contributed to the global spread of tobacco consumption. “The fast changing social milieus, social sanctions and other factors are mainly contributing to this proliferation and has posed serious challenge to individuals, families, societies and nations. Tobacco use is a major worldwide public health problem,” says the study.
source:indianexpress