Pakistan has taken a number of tangible steps towards reducing adolescent tobacco consumption in the country such as enforcing bans on tobacco advertising and under- age sales. A recent decision by the Ministry of Health to introduce pictorial warnings on cigarette packs could also have a major impact [14]. However, for comprehen- sive enforcement of the Framework Convention for Tobacco Control (FCTC), the government will need to ensure that the warnings are rotated, are of appropriate size and are present on all packaging and labeling [15]. In addition, current tobacco control legislation is not directed against shisha smoking that is acquiring increas- ingly popularity amongst the youth [16].
Our results suggest that the effectiveness of the health messages could also be determined by the type of warning that is delivered. Graphic visual images, such as, pictures of oral cavity cancers were perceived to have the greatest impact in deterring students from smoking. Multi-media aids that conveyed messages students could relate to, both anatomically and func- tionally, ranked higher than the more commonly used pictures of a ‘smoker’s lungs,’ that could perhaps not convey the health warning with a similar impact. Amongst these multi-media aids also included videos of a patient using an electronic larynx and a patient on a ventilator. These findings suggest that such multi- media aids may be effective advertisements for health promotion campaigns.
Our findings give further support to the use of pictor- ial and multi-media health warnings instead of warnings consisting only of text that were perceived to be less
Page 4 of 5
effective. This is particularly pertinent in countries with poor literacy rates such as Pakistan. In addition, cigar- ette pack warnings in the country are often in English, which is understood by a limited segment of the popula- tion, hence, obfuscating the necessary health promotion messages. Multi-media anti-smoking messages could therefore may improve awareness of the health conse- quences of smoking amongst the youth in Pakistan. Modifying label packaging to include graphic health warnings has been demonstrated as an effective means of reducing tobacco consumption and improving aware- ness of the health consequences of smoking in other countries within this age group [10,17-19].
The participants did not perceive the current ban on smoking in indoor public areas to be an impediment to smoking. This suggests that they are either unaware of the relevant legislation or that they do not believe the laws will be enforced and any violations will be dealt with. They also did not perceive harming others through second hand smoke to be a major deterring factor. These findings suggest that there is a substantial lack of awareness regarding the hazards of second hand smoke amongst adolescents. In addition, the low scores for responses to questions relating to addiction and to cigarettes as a ‘gateway drug’ also suggest a lack of awareness of the severity of these conditions. This is of significance in the school-going age group as addiction is cited as the commonest reason for failure of smoking cessation during adulthood [20].
Finally, those who identified themselves as smokers gave significantly lower responses to those of non- smokers across the question set. This suggests that the susceptibility to anti-smoking messages may decrease substantially once the habit has been initiated on a regu- lar basis. Such early demonstration of intransigence to health promotion messages does not portend well for future smoking cessation during adulthood. This sug- gests that early, directed interventions aimed at students and adolescents may be beneficial as appropriate mes- sages are delivered before the habit is initiated.
The study was limited by the fact it was carried out in private schools where the medium of instruction is English and the students belonged to relatively higher socio- economic group. This could explain why the impact of smoking on disposable incomes was not cited as a major deterring factor. This could however, be of greater rele- vance for adolescents belonging to a lower socio-economic group. Based on these findings, a follow-up study is now being carried in public schools where Urdu is the medium of instruction.