Current tobacco use and susceptibility to using tobacco among non-users of tobacco: A cross-sectional study among school-going adolescents in Sierra Leone

Peter B James; John A Kabba; Abdulai J Bah; Ayesha Idriss; Chenai Kitchen; Eugene B Conteh; Michael Lahai; Philip A Dalinjong

doi:10.18332/tid/157091

Current tobacco use and susceptibility to using tobacco among non-users of tobacco: A cross-sectional study among school-going adolescents in Sierra Leone

Tob Induc Dis. 2023 Jan 30:21:16. doi: 10.18332/tid/157091. eCollection 2023.

Authors

Peter B James^{1

2}, John A Kabba³, Abdulai J Bah^{2

4

5}, Ayesha Idriss^{2

5}, Chenai Kitchen³, Eugene B Conteh², Michael Lahai², Philip A Dalinjong⁶

Affiliations

¹ National Centre for Naturopathic Medicine, Faculty of Health, Southern Cross University, Lismore, Australia.
² Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences, College of Medicine and Allied Health Sciences, University of Sierra Leone, Freetown, Sierra Leone.
³ Department of Pharmacy Administration and Clinical Pharmacy, School of Pharmacy, Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an, China.
⁴ Faculty of Basic Medical Sciences, College of Medicine and Allied Health Sciences, University of Sierra Leone, Freetown, Sierra Leone.
⁵ Institute for Global Health and Development, Queen Margaret University Edinburg, Musselburgh, United Kingdom.
⁶ Navrongo Health Research Centre, Navrongo, Ghana.

Abstract

Introduction: Tobacco use is a global health threat associated with a high disease burden and death. Current tobacco use and susceptibility to using tobacco products among adolescents who are potential adult tobacco users have not been explored in Sierra Leone. Thus, we aimed to estimate the prevalence and correlates of current tobacco use and tobacco non-users susceptibility to using tobacco amongst high school students in Sierra Leone.

Methods: We used data obtained from the 2017 Sierra Leone Global Youth Tobacco Survey (GYTS), which presented information collected from 6680 students aged 11-17 years nationwide. Gender-based correlates of current use and susceptibility to using tobacco among non-tobacco users were determined by complex sample logistic regression analyses. Adjusted odds ratios (AOR) and respective 95% confidence intervals (CIs) are reported. A p<0.05 was considered significant.

Results: The prevalence of current tobacco use among high school adolescents in Sierra Leone was 24.6%, higher in males (27.9%) than in females (18.6%). Male (AOR=1.50; 95% CI: 1.18-1.91), parental smoking (AOR=1.73; 95% CI: 1.32-2.26) exposure to household secondhand smoke (AOR=1.82; 95% CI: 1.27-2.62), having peers who smoke (AOR=2.24; 95% CI: 1.51-3.31) were more likely to be currently using tobacco. The overall tobacco non-users susceptibility to using tobacco among adolescents in Sierra Leone was 18.2% (males 18.0%, females 18.5%). Exposure to tobacco promotion (AOR=1.50; 95% CI: 1.06-2.10) and non-exposure to anti-smoking education (AOR=1.39; 95% CI: 1.05-1.86) were significantly associated with tobacco non-users' susceptibility to using tobacco.

Conclusions: Our study suggests that one in four school-going adolescents currently uses tobacco, with nearly one in five non-users susceptible to using tobacco. Given the high prevalence of tobacco product use among adults in Sierra Leone, our findings highlight the need for policies and interventions to prevent tobacco use behavior among adolescents, aimed at averting tobacco use in adulthood.

Keywords: Sierra Leone; adolescents; low- and middle-income countries; susceptibility to using tobacco; tobacco use.