As traditional methods of smoked tobacco use continue to be met with increased regulations and a general downward trend in overall popularity, nicotine consumption via smokeless tobacco, or other related products is not seeing a similar decline. While these products may not cause similar rates of smoking related disease and mortality, their health effects are still deleterious and potentially fatal. Of a rather counterintuitive note, nicotine use has increased in young-adult athletes, a group typically thought of as paramount in regard to physical health. This study aimed to investigate the motivating factors and influences related to the usage of tobacco-containing products in college athletes.
The study’s sample consists of 38 post-secondary varsity athletes from a number of different schools in the United States and Canada (N=38), with data retrieval occurring from May through August of 2019. The participants completed questionnaires measuring their demographics, tobacco usage, tobacco dependency (via Fagerström Test for Nicotine Dependence), perception of tobacco’s effects on athletic performance, and their teams’ perspectives/expectations regarding tobacco use. Open-ended questions were also included in the questionnaires allowing for participants to fully elaborate on how and why they choose to use tobacco products. Data analysis was performed using T-tests and Chi-Square analyses, while the open-ended responses were analyzed using an inductive coding approach.
Results of the study found that roughly one-third of the sample reported tobacco usage in past year, but none scored above a “0” on the Fagerström Nicotine Dependence measure, indicating none had nicotine dependence of any significance. 85% of tobacco users did not report usage during team practices, and about 70% were cognizant of tobacco’s negative health effects. 47% of all participants reported that their teams had expectations for no tobacco use, and 15% included that at least one of their coaches used tobacco-containing products. Analysis of the open-ended content found generally negative themes when non-tobacco users reflected on teammates who used tobacco.
Takeaway: college athletes may use tobacco at different times during the year or for a number of reasons not documented in this study. Due to the small sample size, generalizations regarding tobacco use in college athletes are difficult to extract, but nonetheless this survey may serve as a framework for future investigation into this specific behavior.
Deck S, Nagpal TS, Morava A, Farhat J, Sanchez FC, Prapavessis H. Tobacco use among varsity athletes – why do they do it and how do we make it stop: a brief report. Journal of American College Health. 2021;0(0):1-5. doi:10.1080/07448481.2021.1897014