A smoking ban at a homeless shelter is successful in helping residents quit smoking to a certain extent, according to a new study by the University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston.
Researchers say the rate of smoking in homeless adults is 70 percent and it might be because those trying to quit the habit encounter an average of 40 smokers per day.
"Addressing the culture of smoking in homeless shelters through policy changes may improve health and support cessation in this population," said Michael Businelle, principal investigator and assistant professor of health promotion and behavioral sciences at the UTHealth School of Public Health Dallas Regional Campus.
In the United States, 18.1 percent of all adults smoke cigarettes and it is more prevalent in men (20.5 percent) than women (15.8 percent). Smoking is the leading cause of preventable death in the country and is responsible for one of every five deaths, each year, according to statistics by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
In this study, the researchers looked at 394 participants in a Dallas homeless shelter. They asked them about their opinions on partial or shelter-wide smoking ban. The survey results revealed that 60 percent of the residents backed a large smoke-free zone on the shelter campus, but only 30 percent of residents supported a shelter-wide smoking ban.
Following a partial outdoor smoking ban implementation, researchers analyzed the changes in attitudes and residents' health. Participants experienced a significant reduction in expired carbon monoxide levels, around 15 percent, indicating less smoking and/or less exposure to secondhand smoke. The outdoor smoke-free courtyard was used more frequently following the implementation of the partial ban.
The findings also revealed that 14 percent of smokers reported that they would try to move to another shelter, while 35 percent reported that they would try quitting smoking if a shelter-wide ban was implemented. While most residents still did not support a shelter-wide ban, most smokers believed this policy would improve health.
"This type of shelter policy change may be well tolerated with few negative consequences," said Businelle.
The study, titled "Smoking policy change at a homeless shelter: Attitudes and effects," was funded in part by the UTHealth School of Public Health and published in the journal Addictive Behaviors.
