Use of tobacco and alcoholic beverages by children and teenagers in a low-income coastal community in south India.

To plan and implement cancer control measures, information about the baseline habit patterns of the community is needed. A coastal village near Trivandrum, Kerala, Southern India, supported mainly by the fishing industry, was identified for this study with regard to establishing measures to control oral cancer there. Oral cancer is prevalent in Kerala. Smoking and chewing tobacco and drinking alcoholic beverages are the major risk factors for this cancer. The socioeconomic status of the fishermen of Kerala is low and their literacy rate is low. The adults in coastal Kerala have been found to have a habit pattern of very high levels of tobacco and alcohol use. A survey was conducted to study the tobacco and alcohol use habits of 146 children and teenagers in this village. The percentages of study subjects with pan-tobacco-chewing, smoking, and drinking habits were 29%, 2%, and 3%, respectively. The habit pattern correlated negatively with education and positively with number of children per family. This survey provides information that can be used to plan cancer education efforts, including redesigning the school curriculum and focusing on high-risk groups.