A Systematic Review about Educational Interventions aimed to prevent Hookah Smoking

Background: Smoking hookahs is one of the most preventable risk factors of Non-Communicable diseases. It is also considered a gateway to addiction.This systematic review was conducted to summarize the effect of educational interventions on the prevention and control of hookah consumption. Methods: Eight databases including PubMed, Web of Science, Google Scholar, Embase, Scopus, IranMedex, SID and Magiran were searched from January 2008 to December 2018. The inclusion criteria were experimental or semi-experimental educational interventions designed to prevent hookah smoking. Results: The initial search ended up with 1610 articles. Finally, 12 articles were included. The intervention durations were from 1 to 9 months. The main groups under investigation were young people and adolescence. In the included studies, the predominant educational model was KAP (4studies), and then TPB (2 studies). Eleven of the educational interventions showed a positive effect for education on preventing and controlling hookah use. Conclusion: Targeted health education interventions are effective in preventing and controlling hookah use; and proper planning and implementation can increase the effectiveness of health services and programs. It is recommended that future studies extend the length of follow-up and use modern training methods, and in multiple settings.