On Tuesday Health Minister Dr. Abdullah Al-Rabeeah commended the services of the security officers who he said have contributed a great deal in maintaining a tobacco-free environment at his ministry.

Speaking to the officers at his office, Al-Rabeeah said they had strictly adhered to a directive issued by Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah to maintain a smoke-free environment at all ministries and government departments.

“Our ministry had set an example to be emulated by others in the public sector,” the minister said while expressing his appreciation to the officers.

Due to consistent efforts of Al-Rabeeah, the number of young smokers aged 13 to 15 in the Kingdom has reduced from 19.3 to 14.9 percent during the past three years, said Dr. Ziad Al-Memish, deputy minister of health for preventive medicine.

A global survey of the prevalence of smoking among young people in Saudi Arabia covered some 50 secondary schools in the Kingdom, including 25 girls’ schools. A total of 1,715 students including 927 female students were interviewed.

The findings were the outcome of a study conducted recently in the Kingdom by the Ministry of Health in cooperation with the World Health Organization and the Atlanta-based Center For Disease Control on smoking among young people in Saudi Arabia.

The study revealed 30 percent of young people are passive smokers in their own homes and 65 percent of the teenage smokers have a desire to quit smoking.

It was reported that 14.9 percent of teenagers confirmed they use tobacco-related products, 8.9 percent smoke cigarettes and 9.5 percent are addicted to sheesha.

The study pointed out 25.3 percent feel smokers among men are smarter than nonsmokers, while 17.5 percent assume that girls who smoke are trendy.

It also revealed 63.8 percent of respondents knew the hazards of smoking and 42.1 percent had received lessons in schools about the hazards of smoking.