News stories and advertisements conveying information about the health risks associated with exposure to secondhand smoke are leading to increased smoking restrictions in US households
The study, funded by the American Legacy Foundation, is published in the January issue of American Journal of Health Behavior.
"Media messages work by changing people's attitudes concerning the health risks of secondhand smoke," said W.
Douglas Evans, RTI's principal investigator on the study.
"Once people process the information, their attitude change often leads to a modification of the smoking rules in their homes".
The researchers conducted a nationwide survey of more than 2000 adult smokers and non-smokers asking participants whether they had been exposed to anti-secondhand smoke messages through advertising or the news media and their attitudes toward secondhand smoke.
Researchers found that anti-secondhand smoke media campaigns account for only 10 percent of people's negative attitudes toward secondhand smoke, but those attitudes explain nearly 60 percent of smoking restrictions in homes.
"Our evidence suggests that a media campaign highlighting the health risks posed by secondhand smoke would likely be a very effective tool in reducing exposure to secondhand smoke in American households," Evans said.
Evans said that most current anti-tobacco campaigns feature messages aimed at preventing smoking rather than targeting secondhand smoke risks.
According to 2003 statistics compiled by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, secondhand smoke exposure is the third leading cause of preventable death in the United States.
Secondhand smoke exposure has been linked to lung cancer and heart disease in adults and severe respiratory infections and asthma, particularly in infants and young children.
