Document Type : Original Article
Authors
1
College of Population Health, University of New Mexico
2
Division of Epidemiology, Biostatistics, and Environmental Health, School of Public Health, The University of Memphis
3
Division of Social and Behavioral Sciences, School of Public Health, The University of Memphis
4
Department of Community and Behavioral Health, College of Public Health, University of Iowa, and Iowa City VA Health Care System
5
Department of Public Health Sciences, The University of Miami Miller School of Medicine
6
Department of Epidemiology, Robert Stempel College of Public Health and Social Work, Florida International University
Abstract
Background: Many waterpipe users want to quit but have difficulty doing so. Little is known about characteristics of those who want to quit.
Methods: We conducted a secondary analysis of a population-based household survey of 2038 adults in Aleppo, Syria, using two-stage cluster sampling. We examined prevalence of, and reasons for, wanting to quit, and compared users who wanted vs. did not want to quit on sociodemographic, psychosocial-, tobacco- and health-related characteristics.
Results: Twelve percent of adults smoked waterpipe (n=248), and of these, 56% wanted to quit and 25% had made a quit attempt in the past year. Friends/socializing (69%) and boredom/free time (16%) were the most reported obstacles to quitting. Those who wanted to quit walked more frequently (OR= 1.85; 95% CI= 1.24-2.77), ate less fruit (OR = 0.56; CI= 0.42-0.73), and were more likely to experience sneezing/blocked nose (OR= 2.55, CI= 1.22-5.34). Compared to users who did not also smoke cigarettes, dual users who wanted to quit cigarettes were more likely to want to quit waterpipe (OR= 2.32; CI= 1.24-4.34), whereas dual users who did not want to quit cigarettes were less likely to want to quit waterpipe (OR= 0.24; CI= 0.10-0.58).
Conclusion: Many waterpipe users want to quit and perceive the loss of positive social functions to be a major obstacle. Very few sociodemographic, tobacco-related, psychosocial, or health-related characteristics are associated with wanting to quit. However, cessation efforts may benefit from targeting dual users who are motivated to quit use of all tobacco products.
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