Khat Chewing and Associated Factors Among Elementary School Early Adolescent Students in Eastern Ethiopia: Multicenter Cross-sectional Study

<i>Background:</i> Khat chewing practices are common in the Arabian Peninsula and in Eastern Africa, including Ethiopia. Khat chewing is popular among adolescents in Ethiopia. However, there are no studies on the practice of Khat chewing among early adolescents in school children in the eastern part of the country, where the majority of khat in the country is produced and exported. <i>Objective:</i> This study aimed to assess khat chewing and associated factors among early adolescent school children in Haramaya district from September 1 to 30, 2023. <i>Methods and Materials:</i> A school-based cross-sectional study was conducted in Haramaya District from September 1 to 30, 2023. A total of 592 early adolescent school children were selected sampling technique with simple random sampling. Trained data collectors collected data structured questionnaires. The data were entered into EpiData version 4.6. The data were then exported to the SPSS version 23 statistical package for further data processing and analysis. Descriptive statistical tests and bivariate and multivariate logistic regression analyses were used to determine predictors of Khat chewing among early adolescents. The level of significance was set at a P value of less than 0.05. <i>Results: </i>The current prevalence of khat chewing was 38.9% (CI: 34.0%-42.1%). Among the studied variables, male sex [AOR=2.47; 95% CI: (1.61-3.86)], peer pressure [AOR=3.67; 95% CI: 2.45-5.40)], easy availability of khat [AOR=1.95; 95% (1.01-3.78)], and living with khat chewers [AOR=7.48; 95% CI: (4.60-12.16)] were significantly associated with current khat chewing practices. <i>Conclusion:</i> Khat chewing is prevalent among early adolescents in elementary school in the study area. The factors most strongly associated with khat chewing were male sex, peer pressure, living with khat chewers and easy availability of khat. The findings suggest the need to create public awareness among the community, particularly for adolescents and their parents.