Table 1.
The characteristics of school-going adolescents in Zambia according to their sex and smoking status using Global Youth Tobacco Survey 2011 (N=2611)
| Characteristics | Males (1282; 49.1%) | Females (1329; 50.9%) | Overall | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Current smokers | Current smokers | ||||
| Yes | No | Yes | No | ||
| n (%) | n (%) | n (%) | n (%) | n (%) | |
| Total | 100 (7.8) | 1182 (92.2) | 77 (5.8) | 1252 (94.2) | 2611 (100) |
| Age (years) | |||||
| <14 | 12 (12.2) | 276 (23.6) | 15 (15.9) | 358 (28.7) | 661 (25.5) |
| 14 | 16 (16.3) | 238 (20.3) | 26 (24.0) | 300 (24.1) | 580 (22.4) |
| 15 | 21 (21.4) | 240 (20.5) | 13 (19.7) | 285 (22.9) | 559 (21.6) |
| 16 | 19 (19.3) | 234 (20.0) | 17 (19.7) | 192 (15.4) | 462 (17.8) |
| ≥17 | 30 (30.6) | 182 (15.6) | 6 (20.8) | 111 (8.9) | 329 (12.7) |
| Grade | |||||
| Seven | 23 (23.7) | 421 (36.0) | 31 (41.9) | 447 (36.1) | 922 (35.7) |
| Eight | 36 (37.1) | 384 (32.9) | 26 (35.1) | 433 (34.9) | 879 (34.1) |
| Nine | 38 (39.2) | 363 (31.1) | 17 (23.0) | 360 (29.0) | 778 (30.2) |
| Closest friends smoke cigarettes | |||||
| None | 26 (26.5) | 830 (71.2) | 24 (31.6) | 917 (74.5) | 1797 (69.9) |
| Some | 41 (41.8) | 232 (19.9) | 36 (47.3) | 226 (18.3) | 535 (20.8) |
| Most | 17 (17.4) | 68 (5.8) | 12 (15.8) | 51 (4.1) | 148 (5.8) |
| All | 14 (14.3) | 35 (3.1) | 4 (5.3) | 38 (3.1) | 91 (3.5) |
| Parents smoke | |||||
| None | 46 (54.8) | 800 (81.2) | 21 (32.8) | 856 (81.8) | 1723 (79.0) |
| Both | 6 (7.1) | 13 (1.4) | 8 (12.5) | 27 (2.6) | 54 (2.5) |
| Father only | 28 (33.3) | 157 (15.9) | 21 (32.8) | 157 (14.9) | 363 (16.7) |
| Mother only | 4 (4.8) | 15 (1.5) | 14 (21.9) | 7 (0.7) | 40 (1.8) |
| Taught at school about the dangers of smoking | |||||
| Yes | 56 (57.7) | 742 (64.3) | 31 (40.8) | 804 (66.3) | 1633 (64.3) |
| No or not sure | 41 (42.3) | 412 (35.7) | 45 (59.2) | 409 (33.7) | 907 (35.7) |
| Discussed at school the reasons why young people smoke | |||||
| Yes | 32 (37.7) | 513 (45.4) | 27 (40.9) | 541 (44.9) | 1113 (44.8) |
| No or not sure | 53 (62.3) | 616 (54.6) | 39 (59.1) | 663 (55.1) | 1371 (55.2) |
| Taught at school about smoking effects | |||||
| Yes | 49 (52.1) | 627 (55.1) | 30 (42.3) | 643 (52.8) | 1349 (53.5) |
| No or not sure | 45 (47.9) | 511 (44.9) | 41 (57.7) | 574 (47.2) | 1171 (46.5) |
| Last discussion at school about smoking and health | |||||
| Never | 22 (22.7) | 504 (43.9) | 19 (25.0) | 471 (38.8) | 1016 (40.1) |
| This term | 23 (23.8) | 279 (24.3) | 24 (31.6) | 342 (28.2) | 668 (26.4) |
| Two terms ago | 17 (17.5) | 130 (11.3) | 10 (13.1) | 157 (12.9) | 314 (12.4) |
| Three terms ago | 11 (11.3) | 66 (5.8) | 7 (9.2) | 51 (4.2) | 135 (5.3) |
| More than a year ago | 24 (24.7) | 168 (14.7) | 16 (21.1) | 193 (15.9) | 401 (15.8) |
All variables were significant at the p<0.05 level except for: grade; taught at school about smoking effects; and discussed at school the reasons why young people smoke. Missing values for the total respondents: age 0.8% (20); grade 1.2% (32); closest friends smoke cigarettes 1.5% (40); parents smoking 16.5% (431); taught at school about the dangers of smoking 2.7% (71); discussed at school the reasons why young people smoke 4.9% (127); taught at school about smoking effects 3.5% (91); and last discussion at school about smoking and health 2.9% (77).