일 도시지역 고등학생의 흡연현황과 니코틴 의존도에 관한 연구

Prevalence and Correlates of Smoking among High School Students in One Urban Area

Background：The purpose of this study was to investigate the prevalence of smoking, the level of nicotine dependence and smoking-depression relationship among high school students. Methods：Subjects were 839 high school students in Siheung city. The main assessment measures were the Fagerstrom Test for Nicotine dependence and the Zung Self-rating Depression Scale. We also used structured self-report questionnaires which included socio-demographic data, cigarette habit and alcohol consumption. Results：Our study found that the prevalence of smoking in high school students was 20.7%. Among students who had experience of smoking, 7.5% were substantially dependent on nicotine, 46.9% had mild dependence and 45.6% had no dependence. Nicotine dependence was correlated with duration and amount of cigarette smoking. Smokers tend to drink alcohol more frequently than non-smokers (smokers vs non-smokers：3.19±2.57/month vs 2.29±3.35/month). There was significant positive correlation between amounts of smoking and scores of the Zung Self-rating Depression Scale in students who had experience of smoking. Conclusion：More than 10% of high school students initiate cigarette smoking at their early teenage. Cigarette smoking is probably associated with various psychosocial factors such as depression, mental stress and poor primary support group. The-refore, multidisciplinary strategies are required to reduce the prevalence of adolescent cigarette smoking.