[Smoking among high school students in a rural community of Chiloé].
BACKGROUND
People start smoking at early ages in Chile.


OBJECTIVE
To assess the prevalence and features of smoking habits among high school students in Quinchao, a southern rural community in Chile.


METHODS
A self administered inquiry about smoking habits was answered by 144 male and 168 female students aged 13 to 22 years old, living in Quinchao.


RESULTS
Eighty percent of students has smoked at least once. The prevalence of smokers was 64% for males and 58% for females. The latter started their smoking habit at a mean age of 13.6 years compared with males that started smoking at 14.1 years as a mean. The prevalence of smoking increased with age and among students with smoking relatives. The prevalence of daily smokers was 12% in the total sample, 19% among students older than 17 years old and 21% among students with poor academic performance. Seventy two percent of smokers and 50% of daily smokers were worried about the effects of smoking on health.


CONCLUSIONS
The prevalence of smoking in this rural community is similar to that of big cities.
Daszenies
C
C
Hospital Achao, Chiloé, Chile.
Covacevich
C
C
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000367:Age Factors; D002677:Chile / Q000453:epidemiology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D015995:Prevalence; D012424:Rural Population; D012737:Sex Factors; D012907:Smoking / Q000453:epidemiology*; D000074606:Smoking Prevention
Tabaquismo en estudiantes de enseñanza media de una comunidad rural de Chiloé.