29% Indian students exposed to second-hand smoke: Survey

Ground Report | New Delhi: 29% Indian students exposed; The Global Youth Tobacco Survey (GYTS-4) was conducted in 2019 by the International Institute for Population Sciences (IIPS) under the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MoHFW). The survey was conducted on the basis of tobacco use among school-going children aged 13-15 years at the state level and union territory (UT), gender, school location (rural-urban), and school management (public-private). was designed to produce national estimates. ) The first three rounds of GYTS were conducted in 2003, 2006, and 2009.

A total of 97,302 students from 987 schools (public-544; private-443) participated in the survey. Out of which 80,772 students in the age group of 13-15 years were considered for reporting. The purpose of the survey was to provide information on tobacco use, cessation, secondhand smoke, access and availability, exposure to, awareness, and receptivity of anti-tobacco information. Tobacco marketing, knowledge, and perspectives.

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29% Indian students exposed to second-hand smoke

Beyond this, there is cause for concern that the average age of initiation for each of these products was about 10 years. Nearly half of all users of each tobacco product reported starting to use it before their 10th birthday. Despite these numbers declining, exposure to secondhand smoke still puts many children at risk for health problems related to breathing. The majority of this exposure occurred in outdoor public spaces (23%), followed by enclosed public spaces (21%) and at home (11%).

38% of cigarette smokers

The survey also calculated students' perceptions of public health messaging around smoking, and where these messages were most visible. Mass media campaigns were viewed the most (by 52% of students), and the overwhelming majority – 71% – thought other people smoking around them were harmful to them. As a result, more than half of the students also supported a smoking ban inside enclosed public spaces.

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"The sooner we create awareness about the harms caused by tobacco use among children, the better the outcomes for reducing the prevalence of tobacco use in children and consequently among adults," the health minister said in a press release.

38% of cigarette smokers, 47% of bidi smokers, and 52% of smokeless tobacco users started using it before their 10th birthday. The mean age at onset of cigarette and bidi smoking and non-smoking tobacco use was 11.5 years, 10.5 years, and 9.9 years, respectively.

69% of existing cigarette smokers and 78% of existing bidi smokers purchased cigarettes/bidi from a store, paan shop, street vendor or vending machine. Among current smokers who bought cigarettes/bidi, 45% of cigarette smokers and 47% of bidi smokers were not refused because of their age.

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