Prevalence, Knowledge, and Practices of Hookah Smoking Among University Students, Florida, 2012

Abstract

IntroductionAlthough hookah smoking is becoming a source of tobacco use among college students in the United States, little is known of the students’ knowledge, attitudes, and practices regarding hookah use. This cross-sectional study was aimed at determining the prevalence of hookah use and describing social and behavioral factors associated with hookah smoking among university students in a large urban university in Florida.MethodsA convenience sample of 478 undergraduate and graduate students was recruited. Lifetime use and current use was evaluated. Logistic regression modeling was used to assess the independent association between study covariates and hookah use.ResultsPrevalence among students of having ever used hookah during their lifetime was 54.4%. Hookah use within the past 30 days was 16.3%. Hookah use was significantly associated with cigarette smoking (odds ratio [OR], 4.52; 95% confidence interval [CI], 2.13–9.60) and hookah ownership (OR, 10.67; 95% CI, 4.83–23.66) but not with alcohol use (OR, 1.73; 95% CI, 0.74–4.04). Findings also suggest hookah is perceived as a safer alternative to cigarette smoking. Almost 30% of those who never smoked hookah reported they would consider smoking hookah in the future.ConclusionHookah smoking is popular among college students. Misperceptions associated with hookah use indicate a starting point for developing health behavior change interventions. Future studies should investigate social and behavioral determinants of hookah use and determine the incidence of hookah use among college and high school students. Tobacco control activities should include prevention of hookah tobacco use in university settings.

Hookah Smoking and Facilitators/Barriers to Lounge Use among Students at a US University

“…Studies of college students show that ‘socializing with friends’ is a strong predictor of hookah use. 2,32 California's successful tobacco control efforts have worked to change the social norms around the use of tobacco to create an environment in which tobacco is less acceptable. 53 It is important that such tobacco control strategies include efforts to change social norms to make hookah tobacco less acceptable, particularly because hookah smokers believe that smoking hookah is less harmful than cigarettes.…”

“…16,31 Lounges are highly concentrated around universities, and likely, target students. 7,12,32 Therefore, it is necessary to examine factors influencing lounge attendance to identify points of intervention to reduce attendance and thus reduce the spread of lounges and hookah tobacco smoking.…”

Evaluation of the prevalence of waterpipe tobacco smoking and its related factors in Tehran, Islamic Republic of Iran

“…Also, in the Iranian community some cultural and religious barriers exist against cigarette smoking for females. In a study done among American university students the rate of waterpipe smoking among men (22%) was significantly greater than among women (11%) (22). However, underreporting by females should not be overlooked.…”

Increasing hookah use among adolescent females in the US: analyses from the 2011-2014 National Youth Tobacco Survey (NYTS)

“…Tobacco Prevention & Cessation as a protective factor for hookah use among young people [15][16][17][18] , other findings have shown no statistically significant differences between male and female use among adolescents 19,20 and young adults 21 , including an example when female point prevalence was higher than that for males 6 . The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has recently reported rates of past 30-day use of hookahs among adolescents.…”