Dataset Information

Independent Associations Between Different Measures of Socioeconomic Position and Smoking Status: A Cross-Sectional Study of Adults in England.

ABSTRACT:

Introduction

To gain a better understanding of the complex and independent associations between different measures of socioeconomic position (SEP) and smoking in England.

Aims and methods

Between March 2013 and January 2019 data were collected from 120 496 adults aged 16+ in England taking part in the Smoking Toolkit Study. Of these, 18.04% (n = 21 720) were current smokers. Six indicators of SEP were measured: social grade, employment status, educational qualifications, home and car ownership and income. Models were constructed using ridge regression to assess the contribution of each measure of SEP, taking account of high collinearity.

Results

The strongest predictor of smoking status was housing tenure. Those who did not own their own home had twice the odds of smoking compared with homeowners (odds ratio [OR] = 2.01). Social grade, educational qualification, and income were also good predictors. Those in social grades C1 (OR = 1.04), C2 (OR = 1.29), D (OR = 1.39), and E (OR = 1.78) had higher odds of smoking than those in social grade AB. Similarly, those with A-level/equivalent (OR = 1.15), GCSE/vocational (OR = 1.48), other/still studying (OR = 1.12), and no post-16 qualifications (OR = 1.48) had higher odds of smoking than those with university qualifications, as did those who earned in the lowest (OR = 1.23), third (OR = 1.18), and second quartiles (OR = 1.06) compared with those earning in the highest. Associations between smoking and employment (OR = 1.03) and car ownership (OR = 1.05) were much smaller.

Conclusions

Of a variety of socioeconomic measures, housing tenure appears to be the strongest independent predictor of smoking in England, followed by social grade, educational qualifications, and income. Employment status and car ownership have the lowest predictive power.

Implications

This study used ridge regression, a technique which takes into account high collinearity between variables, to gain a better understanding of the independent associations between different measures of SEP and smoking in England. The findings provide guidance as to which SEP measures one could use when trying to identifying individuals most at risk from smoking, with housing tenure identified as the strongest independent predictor.

SUBMITTER: Beard E

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7789954 | biostudies-literature | 2021 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

ACCESS DATA

Publications

Independent Associations Between Different Measures of Socioeconomic Position and Smoking Status: A Cross-Sectional Study of Adults in England.

Beard Emma E Brown Jamie J Jackson Sarah E SE West Robert R Kock Loren L Boniface Sadie S Shahab Lion L

Nicotine & tobacco research : official journal of the Society for Research on Nicotine and Tobacco 20210101 1

<h4>Introduction</h4>To gain a better understanding of the complex and independent associations between different measures of socioeconomic position (SEP) and smoking in England.<h4>Aims and methods</h4>Between March 2013 and January 2019 data were collected from 120 496 adults aged 16+ in England taking part in the Smoking Toolkit Study. Of these, 18.04% (n = 21 720) were current smokers. Six indicators of SEP were measured: social grade, employment status, educational qualifications, home and ...[more]

PMID: 32026943

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Project description:Importancee-Cigarette use among individuals who quit smoking more than 1 ago in England is highest among those with lower socioeconomic position and may affect smoking-related health inequalities, depending on whether the devices protect against relapse to tobacco smoking.ObjectivesTo assess trends in current e-cigarette use by socioeconomic position among individuals who have quit smoking for at least 1 year, to capture postcessation initiation among those who quit within the past year and did not use an e-cigarette in their most recent quit attempt (representing recent initiation), and to capture postcessation initiation among those who quit smoking before e-cigarettes became popular in 2011 (representing late initiation).Design, setting, and participantsThis cross-sectional study of 34 442 adults (≥16 years) who formerly smoked used data from the Smoking Toolkit Study (conducted 2014-2019), a nationally representative, monthly, repeated, cross-sectional, household survey of smoking and smoking cessation in England. Data analysis was conducted in December 2019.ExposuresSocioeconomic position based on occupation.Main outcomes and measuresCurrent self-reported e-cigarette use.ResultsWeighted samples consisted of 19 297 individuals who had quit smoking for at least 1 year (mean [SD] age, 59.2 [17.0] years; 9024 [46.8%] women), 904 who quit in the past year and did not use an e-cigarette in their most recent quit attempt (mean [SD] age, 41.6 [17.1] years; 445 [49.3%] women), and 14 241 who quit before 2011 (mean [SD] age, 63.6 [14.6] years; 6619 [46.5%] women). Among those who had quit smoking fot at least 1 year, e-cigarette use increased from 3.3% (95% CI, 2.7%-4.0%) in 2014 to 10.4% (95% CI, 9.2%-11.6%) in 2019 among all socioeconomic groups. Use was more common among those with lower socioeconomic position than those with higher socioeconomic position (odds ratio, 1.59; 95% CI, 1.05-2.40; P = .03). Regarding postcessation initiation of e-cigarettes, among those who quit smoking in the past year and did not use an e-cigarette in their most recent quit attempt, 7.1% (95% CI, 5.9%-9.3%) initiated e-cigarette use after smoking cessation, and there was no clear trend over time or any difference according to socioeconomic position. Among those who quit before 2011, there was an overall increase in use of e-cigarettes (0.8% [95% CI, 0.5%-1.2%] in 2014 to 2.1% [95% CI, 1.4%-2.8%] in 2019), but there were no apparent differences in use across socioeconomic position.Conclusions and relevanceIn this study, e-cigarette use increased among all participants from 2014 to 2019 but was highest among those with lower socioeconomic position. Continued monitoring of this socioeconomic patterning is important because if e-cigarettes do not confer the public health benefit of protection against relapse to smoking, then equity-negative disadvantages of long-term usage are more likely. Late, but not recent, postcessation initiation of e-cigarettes has increased over time but is not likely to affect smoking-related health inequalities because there were no differences by socioeconomic position.

Project description:ObjectivesAlthough socioeconomic status (SES) has been shown to be an important determinant of physical activity (PA) in adults, the association in children and adolescents remains less consistent based on evidence from western developed countries. The purpose of this study, therefore, is to investigate associations between SES and PA among Chinese children and adolescents.MethodsA cross-sectional study was conducted with a self-reported questionnaire in China. The multi-stage stratified cluster sampling method was used, and 2,955 children and adolescents (8-17 years old, 53.4% girls) were enrolled in this study. SES was assessed by measuring parental education levels, perceived family wealth, and Family Affluence Scale II (FAS II). PA was assessed by reliable and valid items from the Health Behavior School-aged Children Surveillance questionnaires. Descriptive statistics were used to report sample characteristics, including demographic characteristics, levels of PA, and SES. The Chi-square test was applied to analyze the differences of PA in gender and school period. Binary logistic regression was used to analyze the association between SES and PA among children and adolescents.ResultsOverall, 10.4% of children and adolescents accumulated moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA) at least 60 min per day. Boys were more physically active than girls (14.1% vs. 7.2%, p < 0.001). Higher socioeconomic status was positively associated with higher physical activity levels among children and adolescents, especially using FAS and mother education level as SES measures. The association between SES and PA varied by gender and grade group, and the effects of SES are also different on weekdays and weekends.ConclusionThis study found socioeconomic disparities in PA among Chinese children and adolescents, and showed the importance of targeting children and adolescents with low SES intervention priority. Based on these research findings, it is suggested that SES, especially for FAS and mother education level, should be considered when designing and implementing the promotion of regular PA in children and adolescents. Health policymakers may use this information to develop interventions to reduce health inequalities among children and adolescents in the future.

Dataset Information

Independent Associations Between Different Measures of Socioeconomic Position and Smoking Status: A Cross-Sectional Study of Adults in England.

Introduction

Aims and methods

Results

Conclusions

Implications

Publications

Independent Associations Between Different Measures of Socioeconomic Position and Smoking Status: A Cross-Sectional Study of Adults in England.

Similar Datasets

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