BACKGROUND: Tobacco use in Bangladesh, both smoked and smokeless forms, constitutes a major health hazard with a wide-ranging impact on the economy and productivity of our developing nation. Evidence shows that family, especially parental, smoking increases the risk for adolescent smoking initiation. Bangladesh lacks local evidence to develop and implement effective Social and Behavior Change Communication (SBCC) Programs for tobacco control. Therefore, the study was conducted to assess the prevalence of parental tobacco use in Bangladesh and its impact on the children to pave the way for making Bangladesh Tobacco-free by 2040.
METHODS: The research was a cross-sectional quantitative study covering a representative sample of 4043 adults (aged 50+ years) with children 15+ years. A two-stage stratified cluster approach was followed to interview the respondents at the household level. Statistical tests were performed to determine the association between parental tobacco use and its impact on children.
RESULTS: The prevalence of tobacco use among the study respondents was 60.9% and the majority (91%) were aware of the health risks of tobacco. Among the respondents’ children available during the survey, 35.0% had ever used tobacco, with 30.8% specifically used smoking tobacco. The association between parental tobacco use and at least one child with ever use of tobacco was found to be highly significant (p<0.001). Notably, 41.7% of ever tobacco users had at least one child who had also used tobacco at some point. Children’s involvement in purchasing tobacco products (both smoking and smokeless tobacco ) for parents and attraction to parental tobacco uses significantly (p<0.001) affect children’s tobacco use.
CONCLUSIONS: Since the Tobacco Control Act respects the privacy of people and their homes, the power of SBCC should be optimally utilized, especially targeting parents and elders, to reduce tobacco use in the home and ensure the health of all family members.