Abstract—This mixed methods study investigates the knowledge of youth aged 18 to 24 years about the negative health effects of cigarette smoking. Qualitative interviews were conducted with 18 young smokers. Survey participants comprised 550 youth (irrespective of smoking status). Data was analyzed using the software Nvivo 9 and the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) version 19. Most young smokers recounted some health hazards associated with smoking but expressed a sense of invincibility to the hazards of smoking. Some resorted to reducing their daily consumption of cigarettes or taking cancer protective foods to avoid the health consequences of their smoking habit. Just over half of survey participants had a high knowledge level of the negative health effects of cigarette smoking. This was significantly higher among; non-smokers, females, students, respondents who had never smoked. There is need to raise more awareness in the population on the dangers of smoking.
Index Terms—Cigarette, health and well-being, knowledge, Nigeria, youth.
The authors are with UKZN, Durban 4041, South Africa (e-mail: egbe@ukzn.ac.za, cathycards@yahoo.com, peterseni@ukzn.ac.za, meyerweitza@ukzn.ac.za).
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Cite: Catherine O. Egbe, Inge Petersen, and Anna Meyer-Weitz, " Knowledge of the Negative Effects of Cigarette Smoking on Health and Well-Being among Southern Nigerian Youth," International Journal of Social Science and Humanity vol. 6, no. 3, pp. 184-190, 2016.