Introduction:
Teachers play a key role in students’ attitudes and behavior towards smoking. We aimed to investigate characteristics and attitudes towards tobacco smoking among Greek teachers.

Material and Methods:
The sampling frame consisted of schools in the two biggest cities of Greece. Teachers were invited to register online and complete an electronic questionnaire. Altogether, 1.032 participants enrolled in the study.

Results:
Current smoking was reported by 25.6% of the respondents. 13.6% reported smoking during the first 60 minutes after awakening, 2.7% reported difficulty refraining from smoking in places were it is forbidden and 5.6% reported smoking even if sick and in bed most of the day. A total of 22.6% reported successful smoking cessation and 15.5% reported unsuccessful quit attempts. Of those who reported smoking, 20.6% expressed health concerns, 18.1% reported intention to quit and 9.5% stated they would consult a physician or a smoking cessation clinic. The majority (98.4%) classified nicotine as an addictive substance, yet a smaller proportion of the respondents (66.2%) compared the addictive effect of nicotine to that of heroin and cocaine. Almost all teachers (98.5%) agreed with the development of smoking prevention activities among students.

Conclusions:
Greek teachers display a lower smoking rate as compared to the general adult Greek population, a similar smoking rate to the general adult European population and a considerable percentage of smoking cessation rate. Public health efforts should focus on bridging teachers’ intention to quit with efficient cessation support and on pairing smoking prevention programs with their intention to participate.

Funding:
This survey was supported by an ESP grant (MIS372829) and the George Behrakis Foundation