Tobacco use among youth and adults in Mainland China: the China Seven Cities Study.
OBJECTIVE
The China Seven Cities Study (CSCS) monitors geographic and temporal trends in tobacco use among adolescents and adults in seven cities throughout Mainland China: Harbin, Shenyang, Wuhan, Chengdu, Kunming, Hangzhou, and Qingdao. This article presents the methodology and prevalence data from the baseline survey of the CSCS, conducted in 2002.


METHODS
Stratified random samples of middle schools, high schools, and colleges were selected within each city. Students and their parents completed self-report surveys of their tobacco use. Data were obtained from 6138 middle school students, 5848 academic high school students, 2448 vocational high school students, 2556 college students, and 25 697 parents.


RESULTS
Smoking prevalence varied across age groups, school types, genders, and cities. Past-month smoking prevalence was 9% among middle school students, 8% among academic high school students, 26% among vocational high school students, 21% among college students, and 40% among parents. Smoking prevalence was higher among males than among females, with larger gender disparities among adults than among youth. Smoking also varied across cities, with higher smoking prevalence in southwestern cities and lower prevalence in coastal cities. Intraclass correlations of students within schools are presented to inform statistical power estimates for further research in China.


CONCLUSIONS
These results provide a baseline for future longitudinal studies of smoking in these cities and identify demographic groups at risk for tobacco-related disease. Effective smoking prevention programmes for youth and smoking cessation programmes for adults are needed in China, especially in the lower-income southwestern cities and in vocational high schools throughout the country.
Anderson Johnson
C
C
Transdisciplinary Tobacco Use Research Center University of Southern California Keck School of Medicine, 1000 S. Fremont, Box 8, Alhambra, CA 91803, USA.
Palmer
Paula H
PH
Chou
Chih-Ping
CP
Pang
Zengchang
Z
Zhou
Dunjin
D
Dong
Lijun
L
Xiang
Haiqing
H
Yang
Peijun
P
Xu
Hongjie
H
Wang
Jian
J
Fu
Xiaolu
X
Guo
Qian
Q
Sun
Ping
P
Ma
Huiyan
H
Gallaher
Peggy E
PE
Xie
Bin
B
Lee
Liming
L
Fang
Tianren
T
Unger
Jennifer B
JB
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D017677:Age Distribution; D002681:China / Q000453:epidemiology; D005260:Female; D006306:Health Surveys; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010290:Parents; D015995:Prevalence; D012574:Schools / Q000145:classification; D017678:Sex Distribution; D012907:Smoking / Q000453:epidemiology*; D013334:Students / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D014029:Tobacco Use Disorder / Q000453:epidemiology*; D014504:Urban Health / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*