Further work is required to determine whether this is a problem local to The Gambia or reflects a wider pattern of tobacco use in sub-Saharan Africa.
The WHO estimates that around 1 billion people are current smokers,1 80% of whom live in low-income and middle-income countries (LMICs),2 3 and that this total will rise to 1.7 billion by 2025.
Rich countries show that most smokers begin smoking before age 18,4 and that between 33% and 50% of those who try smoking even few cigarettes become regular smokers.
There is also concern over the emergence of waterpipe (shisha) smoking among young people.6 7 Preventing smoking experimentation and uptake among young people in LMICs is a clear public health priority.
Since smoking prevalence is now falling in many rich countries, tobacco companies are turning to LMICs to generate new growth in tobacco sales.
Tobacco consumption and in due course tobacco-related mortality are therefore likely to grow most markedly over the coming decades in LMICs.3 8 However, data on smoking prevalence among young people in the world’s poorest nations, particularly in sub-Saharan Africa, remain sparse.
The Gambia is a West African country of 1.9 million people with a per capita gross domestic product of US$471 in 2015.9 Although The Gambia has no tobacco industry presence, smoking prevalence among adult men, estimated at 24% (and 0.8% in women) in 2012, is common compared with many LMICs.
Data on tobacco use in young people are limited however, to a study of schools in the Greater Banjul Area in 2008, in which 9% of girls and 13% of boys aged 13–15 years had smoked in the past 30 days.11 Since about 40% of Gambians are currently aged 15 years, this indicates that the number of young smokers in The Gambia is likely to rise in coming decades.
To obtain a reliable and nationally representative estimate of smoking prevalence, and the major risk factors for smoking among young people in The Gambia, we conducted a survey of smoking prevalence and determinants in a national sample of Gambian schools.
Tobacco use is common among young people in The Gambia.
Shisha smoking is also common in this population, and in relative terms especially among girls.
Further work is required to determine whether this is a problem local to The Gambia or reflects a wider pattern of tobacco use in sub-Saharan Africa.
Source-Youth News
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