Abstract :
Despite scientific evidences linking tobacco to adverse health outcomes and smoking
being banned in college campuses, a good proportion of youth is using tobacco
products. College students are especially vulnerable due to their independent living
away from home, making own choices and attraction to new lifestyle. Healthcare
providers who smoke send ambiguous message to patients whom they have
encouraged to cease smoking or are less likely to provide patients with antismoking
advice. The objective of the study is to find the proportion of male medical
undergraduate students who smoke tobacco in a medical college in North Kerala.
Among the 200 male undergraduate medical students, 31% were current tobacco
smokers. Among them, (46.88%) smoked daily, (39.06%) occasionally and (14.06%)
rarely. Most reported no specific reason for initiation, while about one-fourth gave
reasons like curiosity, tension relief and peer pressure. 38.71% initiated after joining
college. 85.5% were aware of harmful effects of tobacco. Family, friends and social
media were found to be the common sources of information. 84 (42%) knew about
Stop-Smoking Clinic functioning in the hospital. Around half expressed the desire to
quit. One-fifth reported peer pressure as reason for not quitting. To conclude, it would
be ideal to counsel medical students and highlight the importance of being role models.
Keyword :
Smoking, Tobacco, Male medical students.