Abstract

Purpose: Use of smokeless tobacco is a major preventable cause of premature death and diseases. It leads to over 5 million deaths annually worldwide. This study aimed to investigate the status of smokeless tobacco use and its associated factors among the business guilds population of Chabahar City, Iran. Method: The present descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted on 320 users of various types of smokeless tobacco selected by simple random sampling method. Data were collected using a researcher-made demographic questionnaire, smokeless tobacco inventory, attitude questionnaire, and behavior questionnaire. The validity and reliability of these tools were confirmed in the previous studies. Data were analyzed in SPSS using descriptive (mean, standard deviation, frequency, and age) and inferential statistics (Kruskal-Wallis and Exact Fisher test). Results: Most of the participants used the chewing tobaccos Gutkha and Pan-Parag (24, 95 CI= 28.7-19.4 and 23, 95 CI= 27.7-18.5, respectively). The mean scores (standard deviations) of the participants' behavior and attitude were 7.71 (2.59) and 22.34 (7.60), respectively. The results of bivariate analysis indicated no significant difference among different smokeless tobacco groups regarding the attitude scores (P = 0.104). A significant association was observed among different groups of smokeless tobacco regarding the behavioral scores (P = 0.007). Conclusion: The scores of attitude and behavior were significantly low among the business guilds population of Chabahar City regarding consumption of smokeless tobacco. Therefore, effective steps should be taken urgently to launch social awareness programs to educate people about the consequences of tobacco use and effectiveness in curbing the problem.