Riyadh, Feb 8: The number of smokers among Saudi secondary schoolgirls reached 65 percent, while the rate among intermediate schoolgirls stands at 45 percent, a recently-published survey said.
The survey, conducted by the Faculty of Medicine at the Jeddah-based King Abdulaziz University, said the phenomenon poses a real threat to the health of Saudi women in the long term.
In a similar study earlier, Najran University founded that one-third of the Saudi population smoked on a regular basis.
The Kingdom ranked second and fifth at the GCC and global levels respectively, in terms of the number of female smokers, Al-Madina daily said.
However, the GCC countries have taken steps to curb the increasing number of smokers by raising the prices of cigarettes by 200 percent.
The move did not have the desired effect, and the number of smokers has risen alarmingly.
The reasons for the rising number of smokers among teenage girls has been attributed to wider exposure to the culture of foreign countries in light of the increased use of social media, mobile applications and the spread of e-cigarettes.
Nagwa Mousa, mother of two daughters, said smoking is the outcome of lack of guidance and monitoring by parents at home.
She pointed out that parents should befriend their children and listen attentively to their needs to ensure a healthy relationship.
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