[Smoker teenagers in colleges of Zaghouan].

UNLABELLED: The aim of this study is to evaluate the rate of smoker adolescents in Zaghouan, to seek for the smoking reasons, the used arguments, recording to them, to stop, and show their knowledge about prevention.

METHODS: A prospective study included 266 teenagers scolarised: 194 boys and 72 girls (aged from 12 to 16 years) from 3 colleges located in Zaghouan during 2006. A questionnaire was drawn up on these adolescents. It contains three parts: tabagic habits of smoking teenagers, the reasons of smoking and information about prevention.

RESULTS: Twenty six percents of students are smokers, this percentage increases with the scholar level. They have parents' authorization in 18% of cases and have at least one smoker in their environment in 74% of cases. From whose who have tried tobacco, 65% became smokers. The most invoked causes are calming character of cigarettes and the pleasure to smoke. The first cigarette is smoked just for curiosity. The middle age of smoking initiation is 12 years. Twenty three percents of smoking students have tried to stop. The reasons are the dangerous character for health and the cost of tobacco. Adolescents prefer to use shocking pictures to self-sensitize (66%). Some pupils suggest calling smoker persons who are victims of tobacco to talk about their experiences.

CONCLUSION: Adolescents' smoking is a Public Health priority in Tunisia. The rate of smoking, its cost and its bad health risks encourage us to make preventions, especially the education and information for children and help adolescents to stop smoking.