Smokeless Tobacco in Taif University: Awareness, Prevalence Among Healthcare Students

Objectives: To assess the level of awareness among male medical and dental students of Taif University, about the relation between tobacco chewing and oral cancer
Methods: Materials and methods:The study was conducted during the period of September 2017 to January 2018.Study involved face-to-face interview and recording the response to the pretested close ended questionnaire from, male medical and dental students of Taif University, Taif, Saudi Arabia.Statistical analysis:Data presentation and statistical analysis were performed with SPSS INC Chicago link version 17. The intra-group comparison was done using Kruskal-Wallis H, Mann-Whitney U test for inter group comparison and Chi-square test
Results: More than 75% of medical and dental students included in this study didn’t agree that they have ever chewed shamma or qat. For those who admitted to use shamma and qat, the majority agreed that they do during ceremonial occasions. Regarding the prevalence of the habit among their family members, the percentage ranged between 62% and 74% among the medical and dental students. Data analysis showed that more than 75% of the included subjects were aware of the ill effects of tobacco chewing on health, especially oral cancer. However, only a small percentage of them (<37%) agreed that they tried to help others quitting the habit.
Conclusions: The current study showed a high level of awareness about the harmful effects of tobacco chewing,together with a low prevalence of the habit, among dental and medical students of Taif University. However, the students’ impact on increasing awareness of their community, and their role in helping people stopping this harmful habit, was found negative. Thus, it is recommended to apply training programsthat aim to prepare healthcare studentsfor their future role in increasing awareness of the community to the dangers of those traditional habits.