Transmission of Smoking across Three Generations in Finland

Salma E. T. El-Amin, Jaana M. Kinnunen, Hanna Ollila, Mika Helminen, Joana Alves, Pirjo Lindfors and Arja H. Rimpelä
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Salma E. T. El-Amin: School of Health Sciences, University of Tampere, 33014 Tampere, Finland
Jaana M. Kinnunen: School of Health Sciences, University of Tampere, 33014 Tampere, Finland
Hanna Ollila: Tobacco, Gambling and Addiction Unit, National Institute for Health and Welfare, 00271 Helsinki, Finland
Mika Helminen: School of Health Sciences, University of Tampere, 33014 Tampere, Finland
Joana Alves: National School of Public Health, Lisbon NOVA University, P-1600-560 Lisbon, Portugal
Pirjo Lindfors: School of Health Sciences, University of Tampere, 33014 Tampere, Finland
Arja H. Rimpelä: School of Health Sciences, University of Tampere, 33014 Tampere, Finland

IJERPH, 2015, vol. 13, issue 1, 1-15

Abstract: The influence of parents’ smoking on children’s smoking is well known, but few studies have examined the association between grandparents’ and grandchildren’s smoking. We studied the association between paternal and maternal grandparents’ smoking and their grandchildren’s tobacco use and assessed whether parents’ smoking is a mediator in this process. Data were obtained from a national survey of 12–18-year-old Finns in 2013 ( N = 3535, response rate 38%). Logistic regression and mediation analyses were used. Both boys and girls had higher odds for smoking experimentation, daily smoking and other tobacco or tobacco-like product use if their mother, father or any of the four grandparents were current or former smokers. When parents’ and grandparents’ smoking status were included in the same model, grandparents’ smoking generally lost statistical significance. In the mediation analysis, 73% of the total effect of grandparents’ smoking on grandchildren’s daily smoking was mediated through parents’ smoking, 64% on smoking experimentation and 63% on other tobacco or tobacco-like product use. The indirect effect of a mother’s smoking was higher than that of a father’s. To conclude, paternal and maternal grandparents’ smoking increases grandchildren’s tobacco use. The influence is mainly, but not completely, mediated through parents’ smoking.

Keywords: smoking; tobacco use; adolescents; intergenerational transmission; parents; grandparents (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2015
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (2)

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