tobacco use among female secondary school students in Jeddah

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Tobacco use among female secondary school students in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia
Introduction
It has been estimated that the number of people smoking tobacco will have increased by a significant number, from 1.3 Billion to 2Billion, with a bigger percentage of this occurring in developing countries (Al-Otaibi p39). Moreover, it has also been estimated that the gap between male tobacco smokers and their male counterparts is gradually but significantly reducing. The culture in Saudi Arabia prohibits, rather than discourages smoking among females. However, studies show that females, more specifically in this paper, those from Jeddah engage in tobacco smoking (Abdalla et al., 983). It is estimated that young high school female students are engaging in smoking tobacco, the most prevalent being the water pipe tobacco as opposed to cigarettes (Al-Otaibi et al., 46).
Various reasons have been given with regard to justifying why the girls are engaging in such practices. Firstly, it has been argued that the elite parents are more acceptable to the changes in the society (Jawad et al., 2069) and culture and find it acceptable to the use of water pipe by their daughters. Secondly, it had been argued that the difference in income and consequently student allowance in the region have an impact on the number of females smoking tobacco. Such that, those that come from well-off families have a better allowance, which means that they have access to the cafes and restaurants in which tobacco products are sold (Al Agili, 131).

Further, peer pressure and the need to belong has always been a defining factor in the lives of adolescents. Studies have shown that females in the region engage in smoking tobacco due to curiosity and the existence of smokers around them in the form of relatives and close friends.
Conclusion
In conclusion, the prevalence of tobacco smoking among adolescent females in Jeddah is dependent on a number of factors which extend from cultural exchange, social class to the environment in which the females are.

Work cited
Abdalla, A. M., et al. “Correlates of ever-smoking habit among adolescents in Tabuk, Saudi Arabia.”    (2009); 15(4):983-92
Al-Otaibi, Amani Awwadh, et al. “Prevalence of Tobacco Use and its Socio-demographic Determinants among Saudi Female School Adolescents in Jeddah.” Malaysian Journal of Medicine and Health Sciences 11 (2015): 39-48
Al Agili DE, Park HK. The prevalence and determinants of tobacco use among adolescents in Saudi Arabia. J Sch Health. 2012; 82(3):131-8
Jawad, Mohammed, et al. “Prevalence and predictors of water pipe and cigarette smoking among secondary school students in London.” Nicotine & tobacco research 15.12 (2013): 2069-2075.