Prevalence, Predictors, and Characteristics of Waterpipe Smoking Among Jazan University Students in Saudi Arabia: A Cross-Sectional Study

Abstract

Introduction Waterpipe smoking (WPS), which is otherwise called shisha, narghile, and Gozaor hookah, has been one of the most common strategies for tobacco use in developing nations for approximately 400 years [1-4]. Its device consists of a head, body, water bowl, and hose [5]. WPS contains tobacco-specific nitrosamines and glycerol nicotine, which are derived from raw materials, and it produces chemical substances (such as carbon monoxide (CO)), which are synthesised during smoking, and produces 34 polyaromatic hydrocarbons, which are synthesised and transmitted when smoking [6]. WPS has been used for around 400 years [1]; the Arabian Peninsula, Turkey, India and Pakistan are among the countries where WPS has become increasingly popular [7]. WPS has considerable effects, both short and long term, on human health. Its short-term health effects include headache, nausea, lethargy, and fainting. Waterpipe smoking also impairs baroreflex control, which helps control blood pressure. Various long-term health effects may be caused including pulmonary diseases (e.g. chronic obstructive pulmonary disease) and coronary heart disease. WPS appears to increase the risk of several cancers such as lung, oral, oesophageal, and gastric cancer [3, 8, 9]. WPS also leads to numerous communicable diseases and respiratory diseases such as influenza, hepatitis and TB [10, 11]. Mahfouz et al. studied the prevalence of tobacco use and its associated factors in 4100 students, both male and female, at Jazan University, and states that (according to the World Health Organization) around four million people die annually due to tobacco use worldwide [12]. The percentage of males who used WPS was 12.1% (95% Confidence Interval [CI]: 10.6-13.8), whereas that of females was 2.5% (95% CI: 1.8-3.4). Hassan et al. conducted a study in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia in 2014, with 156 students from Al-Ghad International College, to assess the prevalence of tobacco smoking [13]. The study showed of those surveyed: 42.3% were current smokers, 17.9% were past smokers, 34.8% were cigarette smokers and 21.2% were WPS users. In 2010, Taha et al. conducted a cross-sectional study at Lord Faisal College in Dammam City, Saudi Arabia, to investigate the prevalence of WPS among male understudies from three medical colleges [14]. The general prevalence of WPS was found to be 12.6% (n = 47). The worldwide prevalence of WPS has also been studied. In Aleppo, Syria (2014), WPS prevalence was 25.5% and 4.9% among male and female university students,

Patterns and associated factors of shisha usage among the undergraduate students of Jouf University, Saudi Arabia: A cross-sectional study

“…In a recent study conducted by Salih et al 29 among university students in Jazan, Saudi Arabia, 50% of the participants said that smoking shisha with flavors, such as apple, makes it less dangerous than with flavorless. According to the review article of Qasim et al 30 , flavored tobacco, which gives the user a pleasant taste and aroma, also plays a vital role as a ‘motivator’ for consuming shisha.…”

Shisha Consumption in Cotonou: Epidemiological Profile, Sanitary Consequences and Associated Factors

“…Our results corroborate those of several authors. Salih et al, reported a prevalence of 42.5% of male and 27% of female students at the University of Jazon in Saudi Arabia [8]. The work of Primack et al, reported that women were more attracted to the milder flavoured types of tobacco marketed as more social and exotic than shisha flavour [9].…”

Increased expression of advanced glycation endproducts in the gingival crevicular fluid compromises periodontal status in cigarette-smokers and waterpipe users

“…The results showed that nicotine elevates the expression of RAGE in GECs, which reflects that AGEs-RAGE communications are linked with the etiopathogenesis of periodontitis in smokers [ 10 ]. Waterpipe (also known as narghile, hubble-bubble or/and hookah) is another form of tobacco-smoking, which is a cultural norm in many Middle-Eastern countries such as Kuwait and Saudi Arabia [ 21 – 24 ]. However, habitual use of waterpipe is now prevalent in many European countries and the United States [ 25 – 27 ].…”