Abstract

OBJECTIVE: One of the fundamental principles in the fight against smoking is to reduce smoking initiation rates. Therefore, teachers who are among the most accessible and influential people in the lives of young people, play an important role. Here, we report on a descriptive study that examined the behaviours and opinions of primary school teachers on the use of cigarettes.

MATERIAL AND METHODS: A stratified random sampling method was used to select 21 schools from 210 public schools in Kayseri. The study surveyed 860 teachers who accepted to participate, and data were collected through a questionnaire created by the researchers according to the literature.

RESULTS: Of the teachers surveyed, 31.5% have smoked. Of the active smokers, 54.2% smoke than 11 cigarettes daily, 83.8% have smoked more than 6 years, and 93.7% smoke in the school area. The majority of teachers are aware of the health hazards of smoking (69.8%), give information to students about smoking (69.8%), have information about the law of 4207 (69.7%), and think they have a responsibility to reduce student smoking (69.2%). Most teachers who participated in a seminar about smoking don't smoke (75.2%). All of the above variables were statistically significant (p<0.05).

CONCLUSION: This study demonstrates that teachers who are nonsmokers have more positive behaviours and are more sensitive to the smoking habits of students. This suggests that health professionals should provide information about the hazards of smoking to teachers.