Smoking among undergraduate students in the area of health

The aim of this study was to evaluate the relationship between smoking and socio-demographic and behavioral factors among undergraduate students in the area of health at the State University of Paraíba, Brazil. An analytical cross-sectional study was conducted with a representative sample from each of the following courses: Dentistry, Nursing, Psychology, Pharmacy, Physical Therapy and Physical Education. A total of 492 students were interviewed using a structured questionnaire. The chi-square and Fisher's Exact tests were used for statistical analysis at a 5% level of significance. Smoking prevalence was 5.7% and stress was the main reason for starting the habit (36.8%). In the multivariate analysis by logistic regression, the variables of gender, religious persuasion, semester attended in the course, and alcohol consumption were significantly associated with smoking (p<0.05). Although other studies reported a strong relationship between university students and smoking, the prevalence of smokers was low. Most of the variables studied revealed a correlation with smoking. Since smoking and alcohol consumption are the two major human addictions, this study suggests a bidirectional relationship between these variables.

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Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Granville-Garcia,Ana Flávia, Sarmento,Dmitry José de Santana, Santos,Jalber Almeida, Pinto,Tássia Almeida, Sousa,Raulison Vieira de, Cavalcanti,Alessandro Leite
Format: Digital revista
Language:English
Published: ABRASCO - Associação Brasileira de Saúde Coletiva 2012
Online Access:http://old.scielo.br/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S1413-81232012000200013
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