Gender and Tobacco Consumption among University Students

Emília-Isabel Martins Teixeira-da-Costa, Maria- de-los-Angeles Merino-Godoy (), Maria Manuela Monteiro Lopes Almeida, Alexandra Maria Monteiro Conceição Silva and Filipe Jorge Gamboa Martins Nave
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Emília-Isabel Martins Teixeira-da-Costa: Nursing Department, Health School, University of Algarve, 8000 Faro, Portugal
Maria- de-los-Angeles Merino-Godoy: Nursing Department, Faculty of Nursing, University of Huelva, 21007 Huelva, Spain
Maria Manuela Monteiro Lopes Almeida: Departamento de Saúde Pública e Planeamento, Administração Regional de Saúde do Algarve, IP, 8000 Faro, Portugal
Alexandra Maria Monteiro Conceição Silva: Departamento de Saúde Pública e Planeamento, Administração Regional de Saúde do Algarve, IP, 8000 Faro, Portugal
Filipe Jorge Gamboa Martins Nave: Nursing Department, Health School, University of Algarve, 8000 Faro, Portugal

IJERPH, 2022, vol. 19, issue 22, 1-13

Abstract: In 2019, an estimated 155 million people aged between 15 and 24 were smokers. It is also known that 82.6% of current smokers started smoking between 14 and 25 years old. Tobacco uses in adolescents and young adults can lead to the development of serious and potentially life-threatening health problems. The aim of the present investigation is to identify and describe the practices related to the consumption of tobacco products and their distribution according to gender among students at the University of Algarve. This is an exploratory, cross-sectional study with a quantitative approach. For inferential statistics, a non-parametric analysis (χ 2 ) was performed. The sample consisted of 326 university students, 75.5% female, with an average age of 26.03 years. In this sample, 45% of men and 57.7% of women reported never having smoked. In male students, the pattern of combined consumption is more frequent, with female students preferring conventional cigarettes. Statistically significant differences were found between genders for the pattern of tobacco consumption, the number of colleagues/peers who smoke, the opinion about tobacco-free outdoor spaces and the knowledge about new forms of tobacco/nicotine consumption. The university campus is identified by students as the second space where they most consume tobacco products and where they are most exposed to tobacco smoke. This fact forces a reflection on the strategies to be implemented to develop a healthier university.

Keywords: consumption of tobacco-derived products; gender; healthy settings; healthy universities; smoking cessation (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
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