Swed Dent J
-
Comparative Study
Changes in tobacco habits. A prospective longitudinal study of tobacco habits among boys who play ice hockey.
The aim of the investigation was to follow up tobacco habits and actual sporting activities among the boys who participated in an earlier study by the authors, and to examine whether knowledge of the harmful effects of tobacco and tobacco behaviour patterns and/or the choice of tobacco had changed amongst the participants. The study was conducted 3 years after the original study. Data were collected using a questionnaire. ⋯ The increase in tobacco use amongst the boys in the study showed that the various preventive initiatives which society so far has offered have been inadequate. Hence, the preventive measures need to be evaluated and developed to prevent tobacco habits from becoming established. The results of this and previous studies show that the environment in which ice hockey is practiced can, in itself, constitute a risk for tobacco usage becoming established among ice-hockey-playing adolescents.