Objective
Describe the prevalence of current cigarette smoking and other tobacco use among 13–
15 year olds across 44 countries and 110 sites participating in the Global School-based
Health Survey (GSHS), and compare these results with previous findings from the Global
Youth Tobacco Survey.
Methods
The GSHS is conducted in countries using standardized sampling and survey
methodology procedures. Smoking and other tobacco use prevalence was compiled
from fact sheets available on the GSHS web site from the available 110 sites where the
survey has been conducted and resulting data processed. Tobacco use prevalence rates
are weighted to adjust for the probabilities of nonresponse and varying probabilities of
selection. Boy to girl ratios were calculated to examine gender differences in tobacco use
prevalence.
Results
Current smoking rates ranged widely from a low of approximately 1 in 100 students in
Tajikistan and India to a high of more than 1 in 4 students in certain sites in Chile and
Colombia, and more than 1 in 5 in other sites in Chile, Ecuador, Argentina, and Colombia.
Other tobacco use prevalence ranged from a low of 1.0% in Hangzhou, China to a high of
43.7% in Northwest Namibia.
Conclusion
This is the first multi-country, cross-national study of tobacco use involving GSHS data.
Results provide an opportunity to examine youth tobacco use in several countries and
compare results with the Global Youth Tobacco Survey (GYTS) which is a more
extensive global surveillance of youth tobacco use.