Short-term effects of a smoking prevention website in American Indian youth

Abstract

Background: The rate of smoking commercial tobacco products among American Indian youth is double the rate for white youth. Interventions are needed to reduce this disparity. Objective: To test the feasibility of a Web-based intervention to influence attitudes toward and intentions about smoking cigarettes among American Indian youth who attended a Native summer camp in the Northern Plains. Methods: The study website, the SmokingZine, was originally developed and tested in Canadian youth, then adapted to be appropriate for American Indian youth. We conducted a randomized controlled trial to test the influence of exposure to the adapted SmokingZine website on smoking attitudes and behaviors among American Indian youth 12-18 years of age. Participants assigned to the intervention group were given access to the website for 1 hour per day during their camp experience and asked to sign in to the site and use it. Control group participants were not given access to the site. Results: A total of 52% of intervention youth signed in to the website at least once. Among nonsmokers, intentions to try a cigarette in the intervention group declined from 16% to 0%, and increased from 8% to 25% in the control group (P