Prevalence of the tobacco product dokha among high school students in Dubai.
BACKGROUND
Dokha is a mixed tobacco product, smoked through a pipe, traditional in Arabic culture and popular in the UAE. User forums suggest this product may contain higher levels of nicotine and potentially psychoactive properties. However, there have been few published studies on dokha prevalence and health effects. The present study provides initial data on prevalence of use among high school students resident in Dubai, UAE.


METHODS
416 students were recruited from five English curriculum schools. Respondents completed a questionnaire measuring current and lifetime use of tobacco in the form of cigarettes, water-pipes and dokha. Current tobacco users completed the 'Hooked on Nicotine Checklist for signs of dependency.


RESULTS
Data from 394 subjects were analyzed with mean age 16.9 years. Regular use (weekly or daily) of tobacco had relatively high prevalence (23.4%) compared to international data and was driven by use of the local tobacco, dokha.


CONCLUSIONS
Dokha forms a commonly used tobacco product among young people in the UAE from both Arab and Western national groups. Little is currently known about the health and dependence risks of this product. The paper adds to the few studies calling for timely research into this and other emerging tobacco products.
1School of Life Sciences, Heriot Watt University , Dubai , United Arab Emirates.
Annie
A
Crookes
Kim
K
Wolff
D000293:Adolescent; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D015995:Prevalence; D012574:Schools; D012907:Smoking / Q000453:epidemiology*; D013334:Students; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D014029:Tobacco Use Disorder / Q000453:epidemiology*; D014479:United Arab Emirates / Q000453:epidemiology; D055815:Young Adult; D062789:Tobacco Products
Dubai; dokha; expatriot; tobacco