Betel quid chewing among Bangladeshi adolescents living in East London

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Abstract
Summary.Objectives. Ascertain level and predictors of betel quid (pan) chewing in Bangladeshi adolescents. Design. Cross sectional questionnaire study. Setting. Bangladeshi cultural centres in East London. Sample. Consecutive adolescents attending 4 randomly selected centres. Method. Self-completed questionnaire. Results. 204 (70%) of 290 teenagers invited to participate did so. Fifty-eight (28%) chewed pan; 30 (51%) of whom chewed on most days. The median age of first chewing was 9 years. Only 7 (2%) added tobacco to their quids. Pan chewers tended to come from lower socio-economic status families, liked the taste of pan and were less inclined to think that it adversely affected their appearance or that it could cause cancer. Conclusions. The prevalence of pan chewing was lower than that found among adults reported in earlier studies in the UK. This reduction in the level of pan chewing could be attributed to acculturation. Few teenagers knew about the association between pan chewing and cancer but the widespread concern about the effect of pan chewing on the appearance of their mouth suggests this is a useful health promotion message within common risk/health factor approach.