Faculty of Environment, University of Science, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam.
Vietnam National University, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam.
Water Environ Res. 2024 Jul;96(7):e11083. doi: 10.1002/wer.11083.
The quantitative measurement of urinary biomarkers in wastewater has emerged as a robust tool for estimating alcohol and tobacco consumption in populations. In this study, we applied the wastewater-based epidemiology (WBE) approach to compare alcohol and tobacco use between university students and urban inhabitants in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. Ethyl sulfate and cotinine serve as markers for alcohol and tobacco use, respectively. Our findings reveal that urban inhabitants aged 15 and above consume 1.56 ± 0.23 mL of pure ethanol and 2.8 ± 0.33 mg of nicotine per day, while university students consume 0.69 ± 0.13 mL of pure alcohol and 1.2 ± 0.2 mg of nicotine per day. This indicates that, on average, students consume less alcohol and tobacco compared with urban adults. A Monte Carlo simulation indicated that, on average, university students in our study smoke 1.5 cigarettes per day, while urban residents aged 15 and above smoke 4.3 cigarettes per day. Considering the smoking prevalence, a student smoker in this study consumes 6.5 cigarettes per day, a level high enough to establish addiction. On the other hand, alcohol use estimation is significantly lower than previous survey-based reports, likely due to degradation within on-site septic tanks. Future research should aim to extend the sampling period to capture seasonal variations and improve the understanding of tobacco and alcohol consumption patterns. The results from this study are crucial for decision-makers in Ho Chi Minh City to develop effective public health strategies and interventions. PRACTITIONER POINTS: Wastewater-based approach is applicable to estimate the tobacco consumption in Ho Chi Minh City. Each current smoker in the urban area of Ho Chi Minh City smokes nearly a package a day. The estimated consumption for student smokers in U-town is 6.5 cigarettes per day, a level high enough to establish addiction. The existence of septic tanks within Vietnam's drainage systems prevents reliable estimation of alcohol consumption for the entire population.
在废水基础流行病学（WBE）方法的应用下，我们比较了越南胡志明市大学生和城市居民的酒精和烟草使用情况。乙基硫酸盐和可替宁分别作为酒精和烟草使用的标志物。我们的研究结果表明，15 岁及以上的城市居民每天消耗 1.56±0.23 毫升纯乙醇和 2.8±0.33 毫克尼古丁，而大学生每天消耗 0.69±0.13 毫升纯乙醇和 1.2±0.2 毫克尼古丁。这表明，与城市成年人相比，学生平均饮酒和吸烟较少。蒙特卡罗模拟表明，在我们的研究中，大学生平均每天吸烟 1.5 支，而 15 岁及以上的城市居民每天吸烟 4.3 支。考虑到吸烟率，本研究中的学生吸烟者每天消耗 6.5 支香烟，足以达到成瘾水平。另一方面，由于现场化粪池内的降解，酒精使用量的估计值明显低于之前基于调查的报告。未来的研究应旨在延长采样时间，以捕捉季节性变化，并提高对烟草和酒精消费模式的理解。这项研究的结果对于胡志明市的决策者制定有效的公共卫生策略和干预措施至关重要。
废水分析法适用于胡志明市的烟草消费估计。
胡志明市市区的每个烟民每天几乎要吸一包烟。
大学城学生吸烟者的日吸烟量估计为 6.5 支，足以达到成瘾水平。
越南排水系统内的化粪池的存在使得对整个人群的酒精消耗进行可靠估计变得不可能。
