Khat Chewing Practice and Associated Factors among Medical Students in Gondar Town, Ethiopia, 2019

Abstract

Background: Globally, khat chewing practice becoming an alarming and common among the youth generation, especially in higher educational institutions. It may also lead to frequent misbehavior, poor academic performance, and memory impairment among students. This study aimed to determine the prevalence of khat chewing practice and associated factors among medical students in Gondar town, Ethiopia, 2019.

Method: A cross-sectional study was employed on 422 medical students. Data were collected using a self-administered questionnaire and analyzed using SPSS 20 software. Stratified followed by random sampling was employed to select the samples. A multivariable logistic regression model was fitted to identify the predictors. P ⩽ .05 was used to select statistically significant factors.

Result: The current prevalence of khat chewing practice among medical students was 21.5%. The odds of khat chewing practice was higher among males (AOR = 3.353; 95%CI [1.460-7.701]), Muslims (AOR = 6.390; 95%CI [1.903-21.460]), fifth and 6 year students (AOR = 3.391; 95%CI [1.354-8.488]), smokers (AOR = 5.081; 95%CI [1.898-13.601]), alcohol users (AOR = 4.872; 95%CI [2.094-11.332]), students who had khat chewer close friends (AOR = 30.645; 95%CI [12.261-76.589]).

Conclusion: Since a significant proportion of students were found to be khat chewers, continuous awareness creation on the impact of khat chewing and counseling services are recommended.

Keywords: Ethiopia; Gondar; Khat chewing; medical students.

Figure 1.

Reasons for starting khat chewing among medical students in Gondar, Ethiopia, June 2019 (n = 69).

Figure 2.

Self-reported effects of khat chewing among medical students in Gondar, Ethiopia, June 2019 (n = 97).

Figure 3.

Reasons to stop khat chewing among medical students in Gondar, Ethiopia, June 2019 (n = 19).