The prevalence of tobacco habits and knowledge of its health implications among spinning mill workers in south-eastern district of Andhra Pradesh

Introduction: Tobacco use kills about five to six million people annually worldwide, accounting for about 20 percent of all adult male deaths and five percent of adult female deaths, over age 30. On current smoking patterns, annual tobacco deaths will rise to about eight to ten million by 2030.Tobacco use is a medical addictive condition, once addicted most smokers find it difficult to quit even when they develop smoking related diseases. Aim: The present study was done to determine the prevalence, knowledge about ill effects of tobacco use and willingness to quit tobacco habit among spinning mill workers. Materials and Methods: A cross-sectional pretested questionnaire study was conducted among 743 spinning mill workers selected by stratified random sampling. Demographic data relating to age, gender, socioeconomic status, experience of working in spinning mills, place of birth, and duration of stay in the study area for migrant workers were collected. Results: The study population constituted 628 (84.5%) males and 115 (15.5%) females. Of the 743 spinning mill workers, 616 had a self-reported habit of tobacco use with a prevalence of 82.9%. Of these 616 participants with the habit of tobacco, 153 (24.8%) were only smokers, 218 (35.4%) were only tobacco chewers, and 245 (39.8%) had both the habits. Though majority of participants in the present study were aware of the negative impact of tobacco use on general health of an individual, most of them were ignorant on the ill effects of tobacco on oral health. Conclusion: Most of the respondents had favourable attitude towards quitting tobacco usage and social concern was the main predictor of quitting tobacco usage.