Attitudes to new smoking restrictions and second-hand smoke among young Finnish males.
Summary of "Attitudes to new smoking restrictions and second-hand smoke among young Finnish males."
AIMS:
Relatively little is known about the attitudes of young people to restrictions on smoking in public places and to environmental second-hand smoke in housing estates. The objective was to explore the attitudes of young male adults after the new smoke-free legislation was implemented in Finland.
METHODS:
A survey of 1167 Finnish male military conscripts was performed. The main outcome variables were their attitudes to the new restrictions on smoking in public places and concerns about second-hand smoke in the home originating from their neighbours.
RESULTS:
Almost half of the youths (43.5%) reported that they supported the more restrictive smoking regulations, with 44.8% having a neutral view. Only 16.0% of the respondents were irritated about the second-hand smoke entering to their house from outside and 48.6% were not concerned about smoking in their neighbourhood. A total of 555 (47.6%) conscripts were current smokers. Current smokers were more often totally opposed to the legislation and had less negative views about the exposure to second-hand smoke than non-smokers. Strong nicotine dependence increased the feelings of anxiety and stigmatisation when the new restrictions were introduced.
CONCLUSIONS:
Finnish young men do accept new smoking restrictions. However, smoking with high nicotine dependence was surprisingly common among these young men and the negative attitude to the legislation can be traced to this group of smokers. The repulsion felt towards second-hand smoke by non-smokers represents an opportunity for public health initiatives to guarantee a smoke-free environment in public and private places.
Affiliation
Medical Informatics and Statistics Research Group, University of Oulu, Finland.
Journal Details
This article was published in the following journal.
Name: Scandinavian journal of public health
ISSN: 1651-1905
Pages:
Links
- PubMed Source: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20688794
- DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/1403494810379892
Medical and Biotech [MESH] Definitions
Smoking Cessation
Discontinuation of the habit of smoking, the inhaling and exhaling of tobacco smoke.
Marijuana Smoking
Inhaling and exhaling the smoke from CANNABIS.
Smoking
Inhaling and exhaling the smoke of tobacco or something similar to tobacco.
Cognitive Dissonance
Motivational state produced by inconsistencies between simultaneously held cognitions or between a cognition and behavior; e.g., smoking enjoyment and believing smoking is harmful are dissonant.
Tobacco Smoke Pollution
Contamination of the air by tobacco smoke.
PubMed Articles
Second-hand smoke exposure and household smoking bans in Chinese families: a qualitative study.
As workplace smoking restrictions spread, smoking in the home is becoming the predominant source of exposure to second-hand smoke (SHS) among children and other non-smokers in the household. This stud...
Greece has the highest smoking prevalence in the European Union, with adolescents having high levels of exposure to secondhand smoke (SHS). In July 2009, national smokefree legislation was implemented...
The association between home smoking restrictions and youth smoking behaviour: a review.
Objective To review the available evidence for home smoking restrictions as a useful tool in the prevention of youth smoking and to make recommendations for further research. Methods A PubMed search (...
OBJECTIVE: Identify the psychosocial variables that predict smokers' compliance with smoke-free policies at work, and non-smokers' assertiveness for smoke-free rights in Greek an...
The impact of tobacco control policies in Albania.
Objective To assess the impact of a tobacco control law adopted in Albania in 2007 and to estimate the share of illicit cigarettes on the market. Design Comparative analysis of two waves of a national...
Clinical Trials
Dose-dependent Effects of Second-hand Smoke on Vascular Function
The purpose of this study is to determine the vascular effects of brief second-hand smoke exposure on normal healthy individuals.
Smoking can contribute to many health problems for mothers and their babies. In developing countries, there is little information about the number of pregnant women that smoke and the rea...
Effect of Using a Structured Tobacco Cessation Education Program
This is a pilot study that aims to 1. Evaluate the effectiveness of using a structured tobacco cessation education program, CEASE (Clinical effort against second hand smoke exposur...
How Smoking Causes COPD: Examination of Immune System Changes
A breathing condition known as “chronic obstructive pulmonary disease” (COPD) caused by cigarette smoking is a major health problem. The way by which smoking leads to lung disease is...
Project CASA: Promoting Smoke-Free Indoor Air Policy in Mexican American Households
Objectives: Exposure to secondhand smoke (SHS) is a major public health problem in the United States. Studies conducted in this country and internationally have irrefutably shown the caus...
