A Case for a Maternal Culturally Tailored Smoking Cessation Research Agenda

Danyetta D. Anderson () and Tracy R. McKnight
Additional contact information
Danyetta D. Anderson: Tobacco Related Disease Research Program, Research Grants Program Office, Office of the President, University of California, 11th Floor, 111 Franklin Street, Oakland, CA 94607, USA
Tracy R. McKnight: Tobacco Related Disease Research Program, Research Grants Program Office, Office of the President, University of California, 11th Floor, 111 Franklin Street, Oakland, CA 94607, USA

IJERPH, 2024, vol. 21, issue 11, 1-5

Abstract: Background/Objectives: Despite national efforts, smoking rates during pregnancy remain high among certain demographics, particularly American Indian/Alaska Native and younger women. This study examines the causal link between maternal smoking, maternal and fetal mortality, and social determinants of health, highlighting disparities faced by Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) and American Indian/Alaskan Native (AIAN) pregnant persons. Methods: Data from various sources, including national reports and committee findings, were analyzed to assess trends in maternal smoking, mortality rates, and associated factors. While smoking rates among all groups have declined, disparities persist. Young women, BIPOC, and American Indian/Alaska Native women, and those with lower educational attainment, have higher smoking rates. Black women exhibit significantly higher maternal mortality rates, often linked to cardiac/coronary conditions. Stress, exacerbated by social determinants of health like poverty and housing insecurity, emerges as a key factor driving smoking behavior, particularly among African Americans. The leading causes of pregnancy-related deaths vary by race and ethnicity, with preventability noted in 80% of cases. Perinatal exposure to cigarette smoking is also identified as a leading cause of poor infant health outcomes, emphasizing the importance of addressing smoking behavior during and after pregnancy. Results: This report advocates for a comprehensive approach to reducing maternal and fetal mortality rates, with a focus on adapting existing smoking cessation programs to adopt culturally tailored agendas in order to address social and political determinants of health as well as behavioral drivers of tobacco use among pregnant persons.

Keywords: AA (African American); BIPOC (Black; Indigenous; and People of Color); AIAN (American Indian/Alaskan Native); MMRC (Maternal Mortality Review Committee); pregnancy-related deaths; maternal mortality; infant mortality; perceived stress; social and political determinants of health; smoking cessation disparities; healthcare disparities; culturally tailored smoking cessation (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2024
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations:

Downloads: (external link)
https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/21/11/1414/pdf (application/pdf)
https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/21/11/1414/ (text/html)

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:gam:jijerp:v:21:y:2024:i:11:p:1414-:d:1506742

Access Statistics for this article

IJERPH is currently edited by Ms. Jenna Liu

More articles in IJERPH from MDPI
Bibliographic data for series maintained by MDPI Indexing Manager ().