Background: Tobacco use among adolescents is a problematic risk behavior with early age of onset and consequences in health outcomes in adulthood.
Objectives: Estimate the prevalence of tobacco use among adolescents at school and off school.
Methods: A community-base cross sectional study was conducted during 2007 to estimate the prevalence of tobacco consumption in adolescents aged 12-15 (n=1.998), school and off school. A multistage probability sampling was conducted.
Results: Life prevalence of tobacco consumption was 26.8% and currently use tobacco was 6%, the age onset was 11 years; non-enrolled in school adolescents had higher smoking rates. Majority of current smokers were able to buy cigarettes.
Conclusion: Non-enrolled adolescents have more risk to tobacco use. Public policies should generate strategies to intervene this population. It is important to conduct the Global Youth Tobacco Survey in a national sample of adolescents including of school adolescents and establish an epidemiological surveillance system of risk behaviors based on surveys conducted periodically.