Knowledge and Attitude Towards Shisha Smoking Among Health College Students at Princess Nourah University.

Abstract Background Despite the negative effects of tobacco use, Saudi Arabia is one of the leading causes of death globally. In Saudi Arabia, 17.1% of both sexes and 3.0% of females aged 15 or older smoke. One common way to consume tobacco is through a shisha (waterpipe). This study aims to measure the knowledge of the negative health effects and attitudes toward shisha use among health college students at Princess Nourah University (PNU) in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Method A descriptive, cross-sectional study was conducted at PNU’s health colleges, with the 525 student participants selected evenly from each college by using cluster sampling into five health colleges(College of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences, Nursing, Dentistry, Medicine and Pharmacy), data was collected by a pretested, structured questionnaire and was coded, entered and analyzed by Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) v.20. Results 15.4% is the percentage for who had a history of smoked shisha. The percentage of current smokers was 4.19%. There was no association between the knowledge and shisha smoking practice ( P = .603). Conclusion In conclusion, the percentage of shisha smoking was high, in spite of having a high level of knowledge. Also, the knowledge toward shisha smoking and shisha practice was not associated. In contrast to a study conducted in USA which showed a slight association between the knowledge and smoking practice. (44)