Adapting a behavioural support intervention for smokeless tobacco cessation in South Asians

Posted on 14 May 2014

Smokeless tobacco is a product containing tobacco, placed in the mouth or nose but not burned at the time of use. Consumed by approximately 300 million people worldwide, smokeless tobacco use leads to heart disease, stroke, and cancer of the mouth, oesophagus and pancreas. Its use is particularly common and considered socially acceptable among people of South Asian origin including those living in the UK.

Dr Kamran Siddiqi, in collaboration with partners at Leeds City Council, the University of Leeds and Aga Khan University, Pakistan, has been successful in securing an MRC funded grant of £150K to adapt a behavioural support intervention for smokeless tobacco cessation in those of South Asian ethnicity.

According to latest research, behavioural counselling helps people addicted to smokeless tobacco in quitting. However, this research, mainly conducted in the US and European populations, is of little relevance to South Asians who use more addictive and hazardous products. In addition, smokeless tobacco use among South Asians has strong socio-cultural dimensions, which need to be considered in behavioural counselling. Counsellors in the UK commonly modify their advice when offering behavioural counselling to smokeless tobacco users of South Asian-origin. But there are variations in practice of using this approach, and no standard protocol or any evidence for the effectiveness of an adapted approach.

This research aims to identify the modification required in behavioural counselling to make it more effective, feasible and acceptable to South Asians in supporting them to quit smokeless tobacco. The research team will initially identify required modifications in the counselling sessions. They will then offer these to smokeless tobacco users in two health facilities in the UK and two in Pakistan. By recording these sessions and interviewing counsellors and clients, the team will assess their feasibility, adherence rates, and acceptability.

The project will run for 18 months, and ultimately, the findings will be used to shape policy and protocol used to support South Asians in quitting their use of smokeless tobacco products.