Correlation of Smoking and Students’ General Health at Bandar Abbas University of Medical Sciences

Aim: Addiction to smoking is considered a primary challenge in human communities and has afflicted both the educated and uneducated population. Its prevalence among the educated people involved in the healthcare system of the country is of a particular significance as it negatively influences the entire system. The present research aims to investigate how smoking is correlated with the students’ general health in Bandar Abbas University of Medical Sciences. Methods: The present cross-sectional research was conducted on 600 students affiliated with Bandar Abbas University of Medical Sciences selected through a proportionate sampling method in 2016. The data collection instrument was a standardized trip-artite questionnaire comprised of demographic information, smoking status and general health items. SPSS (ver. 16) was used to analyze the data using descriptive statistics (mean, standard deviation, frequency and percentage) as well as Chi-squared test and Spearman’s correlation test. The level of significance was set at p˂.05. Findings: The mean age of the participants was 21.14±2.33 years, 51.5% of the participants aged ≤20 years while 48.5% were above 20 years of age. Statistically significant correlations were estimated between age, place of residence, sex and smoking (p˂0.001). However, no statistically significant correlation was found between the field of study and smoking (p=0.44). The same was true for marital status and smoking (p=0.318). Smoking and general health showed to be significantly correlated (p˂0.001). Conclusion: Consideration of non-native students’ problems, providing for their welfare and convenience, the authorities’ supervision of non-dormitory residents, and adding anti-smoking content to the educational materials and formal teaching can all contribute to the reduction of smoking in this susceptible population.

Keywords:

Smoking , General health , University students