Prevalence of smoking in Brazilian schoolteachers, 2016

This cross-sectional study investigated the prevalence of smoking and associated factors in a nationally representative sample of 6,510 Brazilian schoolteachers. Data were obtained from telephone interviews using a questionnaire on sociodemographic information, health status, work absenteeism, and the characteristics of teaching work. Smoking was analyzed as a dichotomous variable using univariate and multivariate logistic regression. Overall smoking prevalence was 4.4%. Prevalence in men was 5.9% and was higher in those over 55 years of age (10.7%). Prevalence in women was 3.5% and was higher from 45 to 54 years of age (5.5%). The final multivariate model showed a negative association between smoking and female gender (OR = 0.46), being married or living with partner (OR = 0.53), occasional voice problems at work (OR = 0.64), and longer commuting time to and from school (OR = 0.58). The results showed positive associations between smoking and older age (OR = 2.59), living in the South (OR = 1.98) and Southeast Brazil (OR = 2.07), insufficient physical activity (OR = 1.66), and use of anxiolytics or antidepressants (OR = 2.46). Prevalence of smoking in Brazilian schoolteachers was relatively low. Unexpectedly, although cited as inadequate by the teachers, work conditions and demands in the schools did not reach statistical significance with smoking in the current study.