In India, over half of men (57.0 %) in the age group or 15-49 years use tobacco in some form and over one tenth (10.9 %) of women in this age group also use tobacco. These are findings of the third round of the National Family Health Survey, (NFHS-3) which was conducted in 2005-6, as shown in the graph (Fig. 1). Both women and men were interviewed separately. Considering the type of tobacco use practiced, one third of men (33.3 %) smoke over one third (38.1 %) use smokeless tobacco or pan masala. Among women, almost ten percent use smokeless tobacco or pan masala, while only 1.6 per cent smoke.

Figure 1:

Breaking down further the type of tobacco used by men and women in India, the NFHS-3 results show that among women, chewing is the most common form of use of tobacco. Among men, chewing is the most common form of smokeless tobacco use. Figs. 2 and 3 illustrate this.

Figure 2:                                                                        Figure 3:

Reference

International Institute for Population Sciences (IIPS) and Macro International. 2007. National Family Health Survey (NFHS-3), 2005–06: India: Volume II. Mumbai: IIPS. p. ^{426, 429}
Available from:http://www.nfhsindia.org/NFHS3%20Data/VOL1/Chapter%2013%20%20Morbidity%20and%
20Health %20Care%20(475K).pdf

The World Health Survey, 2003 also shows the prevalence of tobacco use was higher in rural areas (Fig. 4).

Figure 4:

Reference

World Health Survey, 2003 India. Geneva: World Health Organization; and New Delhi: World Health Organisation – India Office; 2006.
Available from: http://www.whoindia.org/LinkFiles/WHS-India_Health_System_Performance_Assessment_
Book.pdf

Back to Top