Factors associated with adolescent use of tobacco products in the Upper East Region of Ghana: A cross-sectional study

TL;DR

This study explores why some adolescents in Ghana's Upper East Region use tobacco products, finding that one in five students uses tobacco, influenced by factors like demographics and health perceptions.

Contribution

The study identifies specific factors associated with single and multiple tobacco product use among adolescents in a specific Ghanaian region.

Findings

One in five junior high school students in the Upper East Region of Ghana used tobacco products.

Shisha was the most commonly used tobacco product among adolescents in the study.

Demographic factors and perceptions about tobacco health risks were found to influence tobacco use.

Abstract

Tobacco use among adolescents is a concern in the Upper East Region of Ghana. We estimated the prevalence and identified factors contributing to single and multiple use of tobacco products among junior high school students in Ghana.

We conducted a cross-sectional analysis of a baseline survey of a school-based tobacco control intervention among adolescents in the Upper East Region of Ghana in 2022. A multi-stage cluster sampling approach was employed to identify the study sample, and data were collected using self-administered questionnaires. Current use of single tobacco products (at least one: cigarette, e-cigarette, shisha, or smokeless tobacco products) and multiple products (≥2 products) in the past 30 days was assessed. Multinomial logistic regression was used to assess the association of sociodemographic characteristics, perceptions towards tobacco’s health risks, and exposure to tobacco products with single and multiple product use. Adjusted relative risk ratios (ARRR) and their corresponding 95% confidence intervals (CI) were computed.

We surveyed 1328 adolescents, comprising an equal proportion of males (49.8%) and females (50.4%). One in five (21.7%) reported using tobacco products, with 11.5% using single products and 13.0% using multiple products. Shisha (13.6%), cigarettes (10.6%), e-cigarettes (8.2%), and smokeless tobacco (6.0%) were used. A number of factors were identified to be associated with tobacco use among adolescents.

One in five junior high school students used at least one form of tobacco product. Adolescent tobacco use is impacted by demographic factors and risk perceptions. Further studies are needed to better understand these associations.

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