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Tobacco Smoking in Islands of the Pacific Region, 2001–2013

SPECIAL TOPIC — Volume 12 — December 3, 2015

PEER REVIEWED

Figure 1. Prevalence of current smokers among students aged 13 to 15 years, by sex and Pacific island country or territory. Abbreviations: CI, confidence interval; CNMI, Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands; FSM, Federated States of Micronesia. Sources: Global Youth Tobacco Surveys (GYTS), Youth Tobacco Survey (YTS), and Global School-Based Student Health Surveys (GSHS) conducted between 2004 and 2013. Current smoking was defined in the surveys as smoking cigarettes on at least 1 day within the previous 30 days. GYTS included manufactured cigarettes and hand rolled-cigarettes. Type of cigarette was not specified in the corresponding question in the GSHS. Prevalence among females was not reported for Niue (sample size less than 20 students). GYTS and GSHS were both undertaken in Tonga in 2010; the GYTS results are presented in the figure, and the GSHS found that 19.2% (95% CI, 15.8–23.0) of male students and 23.8% (95% CI, 20.3–27.7) of female students smoked cigarettes in the previous 30 days. Equivalent data were unavailable for French Polynesia, the Pitcairn Islands, Tokelau, and Wallis and Futuna. CIs were not applicable to the American Samoa, CNMI, Cook Islands, Niue, and Nauru results because the surveys were designed to include all members of the target student population. CIs were not reported for Tuvalu.

Country/Year/Survey Males, % (95% CI) Females, % (95% CI)
American Samoa 2005 GYTS 18.3 15.1
CNMI 2004 YTS 26.6 31.5
Cook Islands 2011 GSHS 19.9 19.4
Fiji 2010 GSHS 16.2 (12.9–20.2) 7.4 (5.7–9.5)
FSM 2007 GYTS 36.9 (29.9–44.5) 19.8 (15.9–24.5)
Guam 2011 GYTS 32.9 (23.3–44.1) 17.7 (11.7–25.8)
Kiribati 2011 GSHS 34.3 (29.1–40.0) 19.5 (15.2–24.6)
Marshall Islands 2009 GYTS 17.0 (12.8–22.3) 10.6 (7.5–14.9)
Nauru 2011 GSHS 19.5 24.5
New Caledonia 2010 GYTS 27.1 (21.5–33.6) 30.5 (23.7–38.1)
Niue 2010 GSHS 23.3  
Palau 2005 GYTS 31.0 (26.9–35.5) 22.6 (18.1–27.8)
Papua New Guinea 2007 GYTS 52.1 (47.3–56.8) 35.8 (30.0–42.0)
Samoa 2011 GSHS 42.2 (36.4–48.3) 25.3 (19.7–31.8)
Solomon Islands 2011 GSHS 28.3 (21.9–35.8) 18.4 (13.7–24.3)
Tonga 2010 GYTS 37.5 (28–48.1) 18.9 (13.7–25.3)
Tuvalu 2013 GSHS 27.2 5.6
Vanuatu 2011 GSHS 19.4 (10.9–32.1) 8.2 (5.2–12.6)

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Figure 2. Prevalence of current smokers among male and female students in grades 9 to 12, by survey year and Pacific island country or territory. Abbreviations: CI, confidence interval; CNMI, Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands; RMI, Republic of the Marshall Islands. Source: Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System [YRBSS], 2001 to 2013. YRBSS results for CNMI for 2007 were obtained from Lippe et al (18). YRBSS results for RMI for 2009 were obtained from Substance Abuse Epidemiological Profile 2010 (19). Current smoking was defined as having smoked cigarettes on at least 1 day within the previous 30 days. For Guam only, 95% confidence intervals are presented because surveys in American Samoa, CNMI, Palau, and RMI were designed to include all members of the target student population.

Sex/Year American Samoa CNMI Guam (95% Confidence Interval) Palau RMI
Males
2001     39.1 (34.8–43.6) 48.0  
2003   46.4   48.0 51.7
2005   33.7   49.8  
2007 22.9 31.2 25.4 (22.0–29.1) 44.4 40.9
2009       58.7 41.9
2011 18.5   23.2 (18.9–28.2) 57.3  
2013     24.3 (19.9–25.4)    
Females
2001     35.0 (30.7–39.7) 29.8  
2003   51.2   31.0 25.2
2005   37.6   26.8  
2007 25.4 31.1 20.4 (16.9–24.4) 30.6 24.4
2009       42.6 23.5
2011 14.0   20.5 (16.7–24.9) 38.5  
2013     15.4 (12.2–19.3)    

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