Religiousness, alcohol consumption and smoking in adolescence

To analyze the association between religiousness and exposure to alcohol consumption and smoking in adolescence. The sample included 4 210 high-school students from state schools in Pernambuco, Brazil, selected through two-stage cluster sampling. Information was collected using the Global school-based student health survey (GSHS). Exposure to alcohol consumption and smoking was defined as consumption of either substance at least 1 day in the past 30 days, regardless of intensity. Religious affiliation and practice were analyzed as religiousness-related variables. The prevalence of exposure to alcohol consumption was 30.3% (95%CI: 28.9-31.7). Alcohol consumption was significantly higher in males (38.6%) than females (24.8%). The prevalence of exposure to smoking was 7.8% (IC 95%: 7.0-8.7), higher in males (9.8%) than females (6.2%). Crude analyses revealed that regardless of sex, exposure to alcohol consumption and smoking was inversely proportional to religious affiliation or practice. Logistic regression adjustment revealed that the likelihood of reporting exposure to alcohol consumption (OR = 0.71; 95%CI: 0.60-0.83) and smoking (OR = 0.61; 95%CI: 0,46-0,79) was lower in adolescents who reported religious practice, independently of affiliation. The present results suggest that religiousness may act as a modulator for the exposure to alcohol consumption and smoking in adolescence. Further studies should be carried out to analyze how the protective effect of religiousness can be enhanced through health interventions and campaigns.