Prevalence and factors associated with tobacco use among men in India: findings from a nationally representative data

Abstract

Background Tobacco consumption causes almost 638,000 premature deaths per year in India. This study sought to examine the prevalence and determinants of tobacco use among men in India. Methods We analyzed data from the fourth round of the National Family Health Survey in India. These nationally representative cross-sectional sample data were collected from January 20, 2015, to December 4, 2016. A total of 112,122 men aged 15–54 years were included in this study. Primary outcomes were tobacco use categorized into smoking, smokeless, any tobacco, and both smoked and smokeless tobacco use. Complex survey design and sampling weights were applied in both the descriptive analyses and logistic regression models. We present the findings using odds ratios. Results The prevalence of tobacco use among men in India for the studied period was 45.5% (95% CI 44.9–46.1), smoking was 24.6% (95% CI 24.1–25.1), smokeless tobacco use was 29.1% (95% CI 28.6–29.6), and both smoked and smokeless tobacco use was 8.4% (95% CI 8.1–8.7). The prevalence of tobacco use among men was higher among the elderly, separated/divorced/widowed individuals, those with lower education and wealth status, alcohol consumers, manual workers, and residents of the northeast region. Multivariate analysis showed that age, lower education, occupation, region, alcohol consumption, separated/divorced/widowed status, and economic status were substantially associated with tobacco use among Indian men. Conclusions Innovative and cost-effective strategies targeting high-risk groups are crucial to curbing the tobacco epidemic in India. Anti-smoking campaigns should also focus on mitigating alcohol abuse. Reducing tobacco marketing and implementing formal education about the dangers of tobacco use, progressive taxing, packaging, and labeling of tobacco products and price strategies should be harmonized in legal provisions.

Prevalence and pattern of tobacco consumption in urban community: a cross-sectional study in adults of Central India

“…5 Islam et al and Joshi et al observed that the prevalence of tobacco chewing increases with age. 8,9 Tobacco chewing prevalence was almost 10% in the age group of 13-17 years, which rose to 51.3% among 17-19 years. It was found highest in 45-55 years of age group (76.1%), followed by 56.6% in 35-45 years of age.…”

Cigarette smoking and associated factors among men in five South Asian countries: A pooled analysis of nationally representative surveys

“…We selected factors of cigarette smoking based on previous research conducted on tobacco use in South Asia [ 13 , 14 , 24 ]. The factors included in this study were age, marital status, residence, region, education, occupation, wealth, watching television, listening to the radio, and reading newspapers.…”

“…However, studies on factors associated with cigarette smoking among men and based on nationally representative and multi-country data are sparse in South Asia. Some single-country studies have identified the factors associated with all tobacco use in Nepal [ 13 ] and India [ 14 ]. Those studies reported that education status, married men, lower wealth status, and poor access to media were associated with smoking.…”

“…Those studies reported that education status, married men, lower wealth status, and poor access to media were associated with smoking. Men who lived in urban areas, from lower wealth status and manual workers, consumed smoked tobacco more than smokeless tobacco in India [ 14 ]. The prevalence of cigarette smoking was higher among men from the richest household, whereas smokeless tobacco use was more common among the poorest households in Afghanistan [ 15 ].…”

Prevalence of Smokeless Tobacco Use in India and Its Association With Occupations: A LASI Study

“…Despite several global policy measures, the trend is not reversing, and is estimated that by 2030, ten million premature death is expected due to tobacco use per year. Only developing countries contribute to nearly 70% of this problem [3,4]. Among the risk factors of NCDs, tobacco consumption is a preventable one [4,5].…”