Socioeconomic Status and Tobacco Expenditures among Moroccans: Results of the "Maroc Tabagisme" Survey
In: American journal of health promotion, Band 24, Heft 5, S. 334-339
ISSN: 2168-6602
Purpose.To investigate the relationship of sociodemographic and economic characteristics to tobacco expenses among Moroccan daily smokers.Design.Cross-sectional ("Maroc Tabagisme" Survey) study.Setting.Random sample of 9195 subjects representative of the Moroccan population.Subjects.Household subjects 15 years and older.Measures.Data were collected from selected households using a questionnaire about smoking, educational level, occupation, and household monthly income.Analysis.Associations between sociodemographic and economic characteristics, smoking status, and tobacco expenses were assessed by multivariate analysis in a sample of 5959 respondents who provided details about their family income.Results.Of 5959 participants, 28.5% of men and 2.8% of women were daily smokers. Compared with students, the odds of daily smoking were higher among blue-collar workers (odds ratio, 2.66). Tobacco expenses increased with higher family monthly income (p < .001). Moreover, smokers whose family monthly income was less than 1000 Moroccan dirham (MAD) spent 50.9% on tobacco, while those with family monthly income of 6000 MAD or higher spent 13.0% on tobacco.Conclusions.There was a strong association between tobacco expenses and sociodemographic and economic characteristics. Among households with low monthly income, up to half of the monthly income is spent on tobacco.