ABSTRACT
Background: People start smoking at early ages in Chile. Aim: To assess the prevalence and features of smoking habits among high school students in Quinchao, a southern rural community in Chile. Material and methods: A self administered inquiry about smoking habits was answered by 144 male and 168 female students aged 13 to 22 years old, living in Quinchao. Results: Eighty percent of students has smoked at least once. The prevalence of smokers was 64 percent for males and 58 percent for females. The latter started their smoking habit at a mean age of 13.6 years compared with males that started smoking at 14.1 years as a mean. The prevalence of smoking increased with age and among students with smoking relatives. The prevalence of daily smokers was 12 percent in the total sample, 19 percent among students older than 17 years old and 21 percent among students with poor academic performance. Seventy two percent of smokers and 50 percent of daily smokers were worried about the effects of smoking on health. Conclusions: The prevalence of smoking in this rural community is similar to that of big cities