Youth smokers' beliefs about different cessation approaches: are we providing cessation interventions they never intend to use?
BACKGROUND
Most youth smokers intend to quit, but the majority is neither aware nor interested in most conventional cessation approaches. As such, a critical first step in understanding youth cessation is to better understand the beliefs youth have about different cessation options.


METHODS
This cross-sectional study used self-reported data collected from 26,379 grade 9 to 12 students in Ontario, Canada. We examined both the attitudes of youth smokers toward common smoking cessation approaches and factors associated with intentions to join a school-based cessation program.


RESULTS
The majority of youth smokers intend to quit smoking but tend to have negative attitudes toward most formal smoking cessation approaches; Nicotine Replacement Therapy (NRT) was an exception. Among occasional smokers, self-identification as a smoker and being physically active were positively associated with intending to join a school-based cessation program. Having tried to quit smoking at least once in the past year more than doubled the likelihood of being interested in a school-based program among both occasional and daily smokers.


CONCLUSIONS
Findings have the potential for informing the development of more effective campaigns for engaging adolescent smokers into smoking cessation treatment. Results also reinforce the need for programmatic innovation within and beyond school settings.
Leatherdale
Scott T
ST
Division of Preventive Oncology, Cancer Care Ontario, 620 University Avenue, Toronto, ON, Canada M5G 2L7. scott.leatherdale@cancercare.on.ca
McDonald
Paul W
PW
D000293:Adolescent; D000294:Adolescent Behavior; D016497:Adolescent Health Services; D001290:Attitude; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D033182:Intention; D008297:Male; D009043:Motor Activity; D012727:Sex Characteristics; D016540:Smoking Cessation / Q000379:methods* / Q000523:psychology*