The prevalence of tobacco use among last year high school students in mogadishu, somalia

This study was conducted to determine the prevalence of tobacco use among last year high school students in Mogadishu, Somalia. The approval of the ethical committee of Somalia's Ministry of Health and permission of the Benadir regional Education Directorate were obtained before the research was conducted. This study is cross-sectional in nature. The sample of the study initially consisted of 860 students and 363 students of which, 55.4% are male and 44.6% are female who study at five different high school students in Mogadishu, Somalia in the 2021-2022 academic year gave the consent to be part of the study. Data were collected by using a questionnaire that consists of relevant questions from the Global Youth Tobacco Survey. The questionnaire consists of 35 questions which includes the sociodemographic characteristics of the students, their characteristics related to cigarette smoking and tobacco use and perception towards tobacco use and tobacco barn in public indoor and outdoor places. The study's data were assessed using the SPSS 26.0 package Programme. There were descriptive tests utilized, as well as tests of association. According to the study's findings, 27.3% of the students smoked cigarettes in their lives, and 5.8% of them are still active smokers. According to the research, 31.3% of males and 17.9% of women of the students consume shisha. It was determined that there was a statistically significant relation between gender and smoking status of the students. The study's conclusions showed that young individuals who used hookah and cigarettes had less knowledge about the health consequences than those who did not. In order to avoid tobacco addiction, primary health care providers, particularly public health workers have essential duties and responsibilities. Public health workers must educate children, families, and the community about the harms of shisha and raise their knowledge of the problem. Keywords: Tobacco, Shisha, Cigarette, Students, Prevalence of tobacco use, and Health