Youth Prevention

Research

Physician advice may improve teen smoking behavior
A new study indicates that, as with adults, physician advice may influence adolescent smoking behaviors. A total of 5,154 students were surveyed about their attitudes toward and knowledge of smoking, smoking intentions, tobacco use, cessation behaviors, and interactions with physicians regarding tobacco use. The results showed that physician screening or advice regarding tobacco use was associated with healthier smoking-related attitudes and more accurate knowledge of tobacco-related health effects. Smokers who received tobacco-related physician screening or advice had lower intentions to smoke in five years time, were more likely to plan to quit smoking within six months, and reported more quit attempts than those who were not screened or advised. The findings indicate that brief interactions with physicians could be an important antismoking intervention for adolescents. Click here to read more, or click here to read the abstract of the study, published in the journal Pediatrics.

Prevalence and correlates of waterpipe tobacco smoking by college students in North Carolina (NC)
According to a new cross-sectional study published in Drug and Alcohol Dependence, waterpipe tobacco smoking is prevalent in North Carolina colleges. Researchers surveyed 3,770 college students and determined that 40% of the sample had smoked tobacco from a waterpipe at least once and 17% were current waterpipe users. Current waterpipe tobacco smoking was associated with cigarette smoking, and those who perceived waterpipe smoking to be less harmful than smoking cigarettes were more likely to use waterpipes. The findings suggest that more research is needed to assess the public health implications of this trend. Read more here.

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International

Parental smoking, exposure to secondhand smoke at home, and smoking initiation among young children (China)
According to a prospective study published in Nicotine and Tobacco Research, exposure to secondhand smoke can predict smoking initiation in children, independently of parental smoking habits. Researchers surveyed Chinese primary school children in 2006 and 2008 to learn about their smoking status, secondhand smoke exposure, and their parents’ smoking status. Results from the study show an association between parental and child smoking habits mediated by secondhand smoke exposure at home, meaning that parental smoking habits may have a stronger effect on children when the parent smokes near the child. Secondly, secondhand smoke exposure at home was an important predictor of children’s smoking status, regardless of parental smoking status, meaning secondhand smoke exposure at home increases the risk of smoking in children. The researchers suggest that parents avoid smoking in the home and limit their children’s exposure to secondhand smoke. Read more about the study here.

Tax rise sees smoking rates among Hong Kong students fall by half (China)
According to a new study by the University of Hong Kong, smoking rates among secondary students have dropped by 50% after a 2009 increase in tobacco taxes. The researchers interviewed 50,000 secondary school children about their smoking habits between 2003 and 2010. After the implementation of the tobacco tax, the percentage of students between the ages 11 to 16 who were current smokers dropped from 6.9% in 2008 to 3.4% in 2010. The study estimates that the 50% increase in tobacco taxes has stopped 13,452 adolescents from smoking. This study offers evidence that raising tobacco taxes is associated with a reduction in smoking rates among adolescents. Click here to read more.

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