Tobacco Quit Intentions and Behaviors among Cigar Smokers in the United States in Response to COVID-19

Sarah D. Kowitt, Jennifer Cornacchione Ross, Kristen L. Jarman, Christine E. Kistler, Allison J. Lazard, Leah M. Ranney, Paschal Sheeran, James F. Thrasher and Adam O. Goldstein
Additional contact information
Sarah D. Kowitt: Department of Family Medicine, School of Medicine, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC 27599, USA
Jennifer Cornacchione Ross: Department of Social Sciences and Health Policy, Division of Public Health Sciences, Wake Forest School of Medicine, Winston Salem, NC 27157, USA
Kristen L. Jarman: Department of Family Medicine, School of Medicine, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC 27599, USA
Christine E. Kistler: Department of Family Medicine, School of Medicine, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC 27599, USA
Allison J. Lazard: Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC 27599, USA
Leah M. Ranney: Department of Family Medicine, School of Medicine, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC 27599, USA
Paschal Sheeran: Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC 27599, USA
James F. Thrasher: Department of Health Promotion, Education, and Behavior, Arnold School of Public Health, University of South Carolina, Columbia, SC 29208, USA
Adam O. Goldstein: Department of Family Medicine, School of Medicine, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC 27599, USA

IJERPH, 2020, vol. 17, issue 15, 1-14

Abstract: Combustible tobacco users appear to be at greater risk for serious complications from COVID-19. This study examined cigar smokers’ perceived risk of COVID-19, quit intentions, and behaviors during the current pandemic. We conducted an online study between 23 April 2020 to 7 May 2020, as part of an ongoing study examining perceptions of different health effects of cigars. All participants used cigars in the past 30 days (n = 777). Three-quarters of the sample (76.0%) perceived they had a higher risk of complications from COVID-19 compared to non-smokers. The majority of participants (70.8%) intended to quit in the next six months due to COVID-19, and almost half of the sample (46.5%) reported making a quit attempt since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. Far more participants reported increasing their tobacco use since COVID-19 started (40.9%) vs. decreasing their tobacco use (17.8%). Black or African American participants, participants who reported using a quitline, and participants with higher COVID-19 risk perceptions had higher intentions to quit using tobacco due to COVID-19, and higher odds of making a quit attempt since COVID-19 started. More research is needed to understand how tobacco users are perceiving COVID-19 risks and changing their tobacco use behaviors.

Keywords: COVID-19; tobacco; cigar; risk; communication; quitting; smoking cessation (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2020
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (4)

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