ISSN 2326-7291
International Journal of Public Health and Epidemiology ISSN 2326-7291 Vol. 8 (8), pp. 001-006, August, 2019. © International Scholars Journals
Full Length Research Paper
Prevalence and correlates for tobacco smoking among persons aged 25 years or older in Lusaka urban district, Zambia
Seter Siziya1*, Olusegun Babaniyi2, Peter Songolo2 and Mutale Nsakashalo-Senkwe3
1Department of Community Medicine, School of Medicine, University of Zambia, Lusaka, Zambia.
2World Health Organization, Country Office, Lusaka, Zambia.
Accepted 11 January, 2019
Abstract
Tobacco use is the leading cause of non communicable diseases. There is paucity of information on correlates for tobacco smoking among adults in Zambia. The objective of this study was to determine the prevalence of tobacco use and its correlates in Lusaka urban district. A total of 1928 individuals aged 25 years or older participated in the survey, of which 33.0% were males. About half (53.2%) of the participants were of age 25 to 34 years, and 35.8% of them had attained secondary level of education. Overall, 6.8% of the participants currently smoked cigarettes (17.5% among males, and 1.5% among females). Female respondents were 90% (Adjusted Odds Ratio (AOR) = 0.10, 95% CI [0.05, 0.23]) less likely to smoke cigarettes compared to males. Compared to respondents who had <18.5 Body Mass Index (BMI), respondents who had higher BMI were less likely to smoke (AOR = 0.30 (95% CI [0.15, 0.61]) for 18.5 to 24.9 BMI; AOR = 0.12 (95% CI [0.05, 0.31]) for 25.0 to 29.9 BMI; and AOR = 0.03 (95% CI [0.00, 0.26]) for 30+ BMI. We conclude that the tobacco smoking epidemic is in its early stage in Zambia. Zambia must act now to curtail the epidemic. The association between smoking and body mass index should further be explored so that an intervention can be designed that addresses both smoking and nutrition.
Key words: Tobacco smoking, body mass index, adults.