The effectiveness of a tobacco prevention program with adolescents living in a tobacco-producing region.

OBJECTIVES: This study investigated the efficacy of a social-influences tobacco prevention program conducted with adolescents living in a high tobacco production area. METHODS: Students in 10 experimental schools completed the tobacco prevention program and a booster intervention. Control students received health education as usual. RESULTS: After 2 years of treatment, smoking rates in the treatment group (vs the control group) were lower for 30-day, 7-day, and 24-hour smoking. The intervention had more of an impact on those who were involved in raising tobacco than it did on those not involved in raising tobacco. CONCLUSIONS: Although modest, effects were achieved with minimal intervention time in a high-risk group, indicating that social-influences prevention programs may be effective in such groups.

Relationship of personal tobacco-raising, parental smoking, and other factors to tobacco use among adolescents living in a tobacco-producing region.

This study examined factors related to tobacco use among youth from tobacco-raising (TRH) and nonraising households (NRH). The subjects were 3,851 seventh-grade students from 19 middle schools located in a tobacco-raising region. Valid self-reports of tobacco use were encouraged by the use of a test for carbon monoxide in expired air. Cigarette use was higher when (a) at least one parent smoked, and/or (b) the student personally raised tobacco. A boy who personally raised tobacco and had at least one parent who smoked was 10.2 times more likely to have smoked in the last 7 days than a boy from a nonraising household in which neither parent smoked. For girls, the odds ratio was 5.6:1. Tobacco use among students in this high-risk group was higher than rates reported in national or regional studies. Other results were: (1) use began very early--16% of the students had tried cigarettes and 13% of the boys had tried smokeless tobacco (SLT) in Grade 3 or earlier; and (2) users reported more lenient rules at home regarding tobacco use than did nonusers. Years from now, these high-risk students are likely to be major contributors to increased morbidity and mortality due to tobacco use. Implications for tobacco prevention in tobacco-raising areas are discussed.

Use of snuff, chewing tobacco, and cigarettes among adolescents in a tobacco-producing area.

This study describes the prevalence and patterns of smokeless tobacco and cigarette use among adolescents with a specific focus on those living in a high tobacco production area. The subjects were 582 male and 485 female students in grades 7 through 12, with 54% living in a rural (nonmetro) area and the remainder living in an urban (metro) area. Self-reports of tobacco usage were validated using biochemical tests. High smokeless tobacco usage rates were found among nonmetro males--90% had tried one or more smokeless tobacco products and 33% had used at least one of the products in the last 6 days. Students' tobacco usage increased dramatically as the degree of personal involvement in raising tobacco increased. Of senior high boys who had household involvement in tobacco, 100% had tried snuff and 42% had used it in the last 6 days; 80% had tried cigarettes and 53% had used them in the last 6 days. Some other results were: (1) use of snuff was more popular than chewing tobacco, (2) the average grade for initiation to tobacco was the fourth grade for nonmetro students and the fifth grade for metro students, and (3) a large number of male smokeless users also reported cigarette use. Students from tobacco-raising households are at high risk for tobacco use. Future research should focus on effective prevention methods for high-risk students.

Saliva cotinine and thiocyanate: chemical indicators of smokeless tobacco and cigarette use in adolescents.

Recent attempts to measure smoking behavior using chemical tests may have been confounded by the use of smokeless tobacco. An objective measure of smokeless tobacco use is needed, particularly among adolescents who may not provide accurate self-reports of tobacco usage. Saliva cotinine was used to distinguish self-reported tobacco users from nonusers and a combination of saliva cotinine and thiocyanate (SCN) tests was used to distinguish smokers from smokeless tobacco users. The subjects were 471 students in grades 7 through 11 who lived in a high-tobacco production area. Approximately 89% of reported nonusers had no detectable cotinine and 99% of nonusers had levels less than 25 ng/ml. Of those who had used tobacco within the last 12 hr, 95% had detectable levels of cotinine. Samples that tested positive for cotinine were also tested for SCN. Eighty-six percent of smokers and 74% of mixed users had SCN values of greater than 1000 mumol/liter, while only 14% of smokeless users had SCN values at that level. The combination of cotinine and SCN was effective in distinguishing smokers from smokeless users but was not effective in distinguishing mixed use from the other two types of use.

Factors related to the health knowledge and health behavior of disadvantaged black youth.

The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between various factors and the health knowledge and health behavior of disadvantaged black youth. Disadvantaged black male and female youths, age 12 to 17, were surveyed regarding their health knowledge, health locus of control, and health practices. Results of the data analyses using an ANOVA revealed significant differences for scores on the health knowledge test due to sex, age, and health locus of control. Females had higher test means than males, older students had higher knowledge scores than did younger students, and internally-oriented students had higher knowledge scores than did externally-oriented students. No significant interaction was found. An ANOVA on behavior scores revealed a sex by locus of control interaction. Male externals had much lower behavior scores than female externals. A significant interaction also was found between age and health locus of control. Older externals had significantly higher behavior scores than younger externals. Implications for health educators and nurse educators are discussed.

Awareness, knowledge and perceived risk for toxic shock syndrome in relation to health behavior.

The purpose of this investigation was to determine the relationship of awareness, knowledge and perceived risk for toxic shock syndrome (TSS) in relation to health behavior. Female college students at a large urban university responded to an 18-item multiple choice questionnaire. The data obtained revealed a high awareness among the 306 subjects who participated in the study, yet many of these women lacked essential knowledge about TSS. Perceived knowledge and perceived risk for developing TSS were significantly related to: (1) menstrual product used before an awareness of TSS; (2) menstrual product presently used; and (3) changing menstrual products due to a concern for TSS. Actual knowledge was also found to be related to the subjects' changing menstrual products due to a concern for TSS. Twenty-one percent of the subjects in this study actually did change their health behavior due to a concern for TSS.

Incest: the school's role.

Most would agree that sexual abuse/incest is harmful to the family structure as well as individual family members. Numerous people have been traumatized, some irreparably, due to their involvement in an incestuous relationship. The school must become a leader in and advocate for a reduction in the incidence of sexual abuse/incest. The school presently has mechanisms for the detection, intervention and prevention of incestuous behavior. School personnel must assume their legal and, perhaps more importantly, moral responsibility to protect and promote the health and welfare of children. School personnel must be aware of the existence of incest, be cognizant of indicators, be observant for its detection, decide to become involved, report and follow-up on the report and be a support group for community agencies and the family. School personnel can make the difference. As it has been said, "If schools are not or will not be part of the solution, could they be part of the problem?"

Child abuse prevention--implementation within the curriculum.

The number of reported cases of child abuse and neglect is increasing. Most educators are aware of the problem; however, awareness alone has minimal impact on prevention. Specific planning is needed, and this article explores various avenues for including child abuse education as a part of the regular school curriculum. The ultimate goal is to develop educational strategies as one means of preventing abuse when school children grow to adulthood and become parents.

A faster radioimmunoassay of progesterone in plasma, with use of polyethylene glycol as precipitant.

We report a reliable radioimmunoassay for plasma progesterone in which polyethylene glycol ("Carbowax 6000") is used to separate antibody-bound and free hormone. Initially, progesterone is concentrated by putting the sample through a column of LH-20 Sephadex. Procedural losses in each sample are not monitored. We compared the reliability and practicality of this method with that of another method in which procedural losses are monitored for each sample; accuracy and precision were similar. Our method saves technical assay time and scintillation counter space and time without sacrificing reliability.

Humoral immunity of parasitized, malnourished children.

The nutrition, intensity of parasitism, complete blood count, and the serum immunoglobulin concentration of 63 children were studied. Hyperimmunoglobulinemia was present in the vast majority of subjects regardless of their nutritional status. The IgA and IgM concentrations were moderately increased, the IgG was increased threefold, and the IgE was markedly increased in concentration. The concentrations of the immunoglobulins were related significantly to the intensity of parasitism.