Personal and family factors affecting life time cigarette smoking among adolescents in Tehran [Iran]: a community based study

ABSTRACT

The prevalence of smoking among adolescents varies in different parts of the world. The current study aims to survey the socio-demographic and family characteristics related to adolescent lifetime cigarette smoking among 1201 Iranian adolescents aged 15- 18 years old. This study is a population-based cross-sectional survey conducted using the multistage random cluster sampling method in Tehran, Iran in the summer of 2010. The prevalence of lifetime cigarette use amongst boys [30.2%] was about 1.5 times that of girls [22.2%], [p=0.002]. Older age, low parental control, very little parental supervision in the adolescent's selection of friends, and having a friend or family member who smokes were associated with lifetime cigarette use among male adolescents. Moreover, the use of verbal punishment by the parents was a protective factor for female lifetime cigarette use. Smoking has become one of the great health threats among Iranian adolescents. As a result, health promotion programs should be gender based whilst educational and interventional programs for preventing tobacco use should begin before adolescence