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HHD Study Sheds New Light on Smoking among Urban Young Women
A new study by researchers at HHD’s Center for Research on
High Risk Behaviors offers insights into factors that may promote
smoking prevention and cessation among young women in economically-distressed
communities.
Smoking, Parenting, and Violence among Low Income Women
Smoking during pregnancy is a well-documented health risk for mothers and their children. Since smoking rates historically have been relatively low among minority, low-income women, there are few gender- and culturally-targeted smoking prevention and cessation programs for this population. This is a concern, both because an increasing number of urban minority girls and young women are starting to smoke, and because many become mothers in their teens and early twenties.
In a special issue devoted to smoking cessation in the American
Journal of Public Health,
HHD researchers Drs. Ann Stueve and Lydia O’Donnell report on
data from the Reach for Health study, a longitudinal study that
has followed a large sample of urban African American and Latino young
people from middle school into early adulthood. Over 500 young
women were re-surveyed when they were 19-20 years of age and were
asked about their reproductive and childrearing status, smoking
history, and experiences of intimate partner violence. Analyses
examined whether women who were pregnant, trying to become pregnant,
or raising children were more likely to be current smokers, and whether
smoking was related to intimate partner violence.
Stueve and O’Donnell found that young women raising children
were more likely than those who were not to currently smoke or to
have smoked in the past. For instance, 25.9% of mothers smoked
regularly (defined as smoking weekly or more frequently) compared
to 13.2% of non-mothers. Women who were currently pregnant or
trying to get pregnant did not appear to differ from other women.
Since young mothers are at an increased risk of partner violence,
Stueve and O’Donnell also examined whether being the victim
of intimate partner violence was a risk factor for smoking or a deterrent
to cessation. After controlling for smoking history, parenting
status, and other demographic characteristics, they found that women
with a history of victimization were more than twice as likely as
those who had not reported such experiences to regularly smoke.
These results add to evidence that shows victimization has negative
effects in terms of numerous health problems. Stressors of early
childrearing, as well as domestic violence, may contribute to ongoing
smoking behaviors.
“These results underscore the importance of helping to address
the multiple challenges that women living in economically disadvantaged
areas face,” says Ann Stueve, PhD, Senior Scientist with HHD
and lead author of the study. “We also observed that about
one-third of the young women who reported regular smoking had attempted
to quit during the past year, but that fewer than 10% had either attended
a smoking cessation class or sought medical advice. Interventions
aimed at reducing parenting stress and intimate partner violence may
be helpful in reducing smoking among urban women.”
To learn more about this research article or the Reach for Health
Study, contact Ann Stueve, PhD,
914-944-3153.
January 29, 2008 |
