Cor Vasa 2002, 43(2):81-86

Long-term development and current status of the smoking habits of the Czech population

Zdenka Škodová^1,*, Renata Cífková¹, Věra Adámková¹, Marie Jozífová¹, Věra Lánská², Eva Novozámská¹, Zdenka Petržílková¹, Markéta Plášková¹, Daniel Palouš¹, Ludmila Peterková¹, Markéta Micková-Galovcová¹, Martina Barátová¹

¹ Pracoviště preventivní kardiologie

² Oddělení lékařské statistiky,, Institut klinické a experimentální medicíny, Praha, Česká republika

Aim:
Tobacco smoking is a major risk factor of cancer and cardiovascular disease. Our study was designed to identify the current smoking habits of the population in nine districts of the Czech Republic, and to analyze, in six of these districts, the developmental trends in smoking prevalence in the 1985-2000/01 period by sex, age, and educational levels of the population.


Study population and method:
In 1985, 1988, and 1992, risk factor surveys were conducted in the districts of Benešov, Cheb, Chrudim, Jindřichův Hradec, Pardubice and Praha-východ; while the surveys in 1997/98 and 2000/01 included also the districts of Kroměříž, Litoměřice, and Plzeň-město. All surveys were performed in 1% random samples of the population aged 25-64 years. The smoking habits were determined during an interview of a physician with the proband using standard questionnaire.

Results:
In the 1985-2000/01 period, the prevalence of smoking in males aged 25-64 years in six districts decreased from 49.2% to 37.8% (p < 0.001). Among females, the prevalence of smoking remained unchanged, being 27.6% in 1985 and 25.6% in 2000/01 (ns). A significant downward trend over the 15-year period is evident in all age groups of males except for the 45-54 age group, and females below 45 years of age. A significant upward trend in smoking prevalence was demonstrated in females aged 45-64 years. A significant downward trend was also seen in groups of probands when evaluated by their education level-in all three levels among males, and in the secondary and university levels of education among females. In 2000/01, there were 33.8% regular male smokers and 23.9% regular female smokers; with another 2.4% males and 2.0% females being occasional smokers in the nine districts surveyed. The average daily consumption was 17.2 (± 8.8) cigarettes in males and 11.3 (± 6,5) cigarettes in females (p < 0.001).

Conclusions:
There were no significant differences in the prevalence of smoking among the districts. Over a period of 15 years, a significant downward trend was demonstrated in smoking prevalence among males while the prevalence of smoking remained unaltered among females. The small rise among males in 2000/01 compared with the preceding survey may suggest a reversal in the favorable trend of male smoking prevalence seen to date. Smoking prevalence in the Czech Republic continues to be high among males and females alike.

Keywords: Cigarette smoking; Education; Risk factors; Epidemiology

Published: February 1, 2002  Show citation