[Smoking in Gran Canaria. Consumption and attitude in adolescents]

To study the prevalence and characteristics of tobacco use in the last years of the high school students in Gran Canaria (Spain) enrolled in the 1996-1997 academic year.

Cross-sectional study of a sample of 931 students obtained through a two-stage method by conglomerates and stratification based on habit and type of educational institution. The information was gathered from a personal questionnaire that included identification variables, characteristics of tobacco consumption, family and social environment and attitudinal factors about restrictive measures.

66.8% of participants were non-smokers and 4% ex-smokers. Of the remaining, 18.1% were habitual smokers and 11.1% occasional smokers. The use of tobacco is higher in women than in men (p < 0.001) even though the quantity of tobacco consumed is the same. On the average, the consumption of tobacco begins at 15 years (+/- 1.5 years). There is not significant relation between tobacco use in parents and their children; however, there is a relation between tobacco use in those questioned and their siblings and friends: 87.5% of smokers had friends who also smoked and 42% a sibling who smoked. When those questioned started, only 12% of their parents had allowed them to smoke, reaching 50% when they were interviewed. Parents were more permissive with regard to tobacco consumption with males.

The prevalence of tobacco use and age at starting are lower in our population than in other studies. Any action taken should concentrate on avoiding the incorporation of tobacco into daily life, creating a social and family environment where the use of tobacco is exceptional.