Sociodemographic Characteristics and Secondhand Smoke Exposure among Women

BACKGROUND Exposure to secondhand cigarette smoke is an important health hazard. This study was designed to assess the sociodemographic risk factors related to women's exposure to secondhand smoke. MATERIALS AND METHODS A case-control analysis of data collected as part of a prospective cohort study was conducted. Participants were 340 female Tehran residents exposed to cigarette smoke. Women consented to participate in this study and completed a questionnaire containing socio-demographic characteristics, household characteristics and smoking status at home through a face-to-face interview. Factors related to women's exposure to secondhand smoke were assessed using the multivariate logistic regression model. RESULTS The final multivariate logistic regression model showed that lower levels of education (p = 0.002) and social class (p = 0.03) increase the risk of exposure to secondhand smoke in women. CONCLUSION These results support the effect of women's educational level and social class on their exposure to secondhand smoke.