CDC reports apartment residents more likely to smoke

smokingA new study published by the American Journal of Preventative Medicine shares interesting findings on the increased number of smokers in apartment buildings compared to single family homes.

Researchers from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) discovered that 20 percent of apartment dwellers are smokers, and that this may be exposing non-smoking residents to the second-hand smoking effects. They also noted that apartment residents were more likely to smoke than single home owners (only 14 percent smoking).

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The research also showed that smoke-free rules applied more to single family homes (87 percent) than to multi-unit apartment housing (81 percent).  According to Dr. Corinne Graffunder, director of CDC’s Office on Smoking and Health, these findings adequately stress the need for smoke-free policies that protect residents living in multi-unit buildings.

“Smoke-free rules help reduce second-hand smoke exposure among non-smokers, prevent smoking initiation among youth and adults, support tobacco cessation among current smokers, and reduce the social acceptability of smoking,” she said in a news release.

Shocking reports from the CDC state that exposure to second-hand smoke results in 41,000 deaths among non-smokers each year. This data was collected from the 2013-2014 National Adult Tobacco Survey.
Tobacco products are used more by people living in apartments than those living in single family homes, with almost a 10 percent difference.

The study also revealed that 10 percent of residents living in multi-unit housing reported that second-hand smoke entered their homes regularly.

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Tobacco use in multi-unit housing was highest among black men between 45 and 64 years old, as well as single, gay, or bisexual people, residents of the Midwest, those with a high school diploma but no college degree, and people making less than $20,000 annually.

“The Surgeon General has concluded there is no safe level of exposure to second-hand smoke,” said study coauthor Brian King, deputy director of research translation in the CDC’s Office on Smoking and Health.

“Opening windows or using ventilation systems does not effectively eliminate second-hand smoke exposure in multi-unit housing.” – he added.


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https://consumer.healthday.com/cancer-information-5/misc-tobacco-health-news-666/smoking-more-common-in-multi-family-housing-than-single-homesoke-study-712810.html

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