PREVALENCE OF SMOKING AMONG ISRAELI MALE-ATHLETES

A survey of smoking habits was carried out on 2447 males age 14-40 yea rs. The subjects were athletes trained in a wide variety of sports. Ov er-all 15.5% of the athlete population were smokers. When broken down into training groups, the highest smoking prevalence was reported by s ubjects not engaged in specific training, while the lowest prevalence was reported by endurance trained athletes. When divided into specific sports, the highest percent of group smoking was found in soccer play ers. Smoking prevalence increased with increasing age. No significant differences in smoking prevalence existed between groups of varying et hnic origin. This study provides data on groups of atheletes to target in smoking intervention programs.