Trend analysis in tobacco use and evaluation of sources of health-related educational information among U.S. college students, 2000-2004

Tobacco use continues to be a significant public health concern for students attending U.S. colleges and universities in spite of mounting strategies, programs, and policies aimed at both its prevention and abatement. Much of the attention reported in the literature tends to focus on tobacco use as one of multiple risky lifestyle behaviors common among the college population aged 18-22 years and reflects interventions employed at independent or a small number of schools. This presentation, based on five successive years of student-reported data from the National College Health Assessment sponsored by the American College Health Association, investigates changes that have occurred over time among a rather large convenience sample of academic institutions and analyzes the relationship between tobacco use and specific student (e.g., race, ethnicity, residence, employment, academic year of study) and institutional (e.g., size, public or private, urban, rural, geographical region, two or four year) demographics; examines the health concerns of students who engage in tobacco use (e.g. asthma, bronchitis, depression, eating disorders); describes social smoking practices; compares actual student tobacco use to their perception of peer behavior; and considers other student economic factors (e.g., health insurance coverage, employment, credit card debt) with respect to tobacco use. This longitudinal investigation also reveals the sources of and effectiveness, via perceived credibility, of multiple modes of health-related educational information, and suggests the value of considering other evidence-based public health interventions aimed at smoking prevention and cessation targeted to the U.S. college student population.