Prevalence of the Tobacco Product Dokha Among High School Students in Dubai

Background: Dokha is a mixed tobacco product, smoked through a pipe, traditional in Arabic culture and popular in the UAE. User forums suggest this product may contain higher levels of nicotine and potentially psychoactive properties. However, there have been few published studies on dokha prevalenc...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Substance use & misuse 2014-08, Vol.49 (10), p.1349-1352
Main Authors: Crookes, Annie, Wolff, Kim
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Adolescent
Curriculum
dokha
Dubai
expatriot
Female
Health
Health Care Services
High School Students
High schools
Humans
Male
Nicotine
Prevalence
Risk
Schools
Secondary school students
Smoking
Smoking - epidemiology
Students
Surveys and Questionnaires
Tobacco
Tobacco Products
Tobacco Use Disorder - epidemiology
United Arab Emirates - epidemiology
Young Adult
Youth
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Summary:Background: Dokha is a mixed tobacco product, smoked through a pipe, traditional in Arabic culture and popular in the UAE. User forums suggest this product may contain higher levels of nicotine and potentially psychoactive properties. However, there have been few published studies on dokha prevalence and health effects. The present study provides initial data on prevalence of use among high school students resident in Dubai, UAE. Methods: 416 students were recruited from five English curriculum schools. Respondents completed a questionnaire measuring current and lifetime use of tobacco in the form of cigarettes, water-pipes and dokha. Current tobacco users completed the 'Hooked on Nicotine Checklist for signs of dependency. Results: Data from 394 subjects were analyzed with mean age 16.9 years. Regular use (weekly or daily) of tobacco had relatively high prevalence (23.4%) compared to international data and was driven by use of the local tobacco, dokha. Conclusion: Dokha forms a commonly used tobacco product among young people in the UAE from both Arab and Western national groups. Little is currently known about the health and dependence risks of this product. The paper adds to the few studies calling for timely research into this and other emerging tobacco products.
ISSN:1082-6084
1532-2491
1532-2491
DOI:10.3109/10826084.2014.901388