Predictors of Smoking Cessation and Duration: Implication for Smoking Prevention

Background: There are few articles studding the factors associated with successful smoking cessation in Iranian smokers. The aim of this study is to clarify the association between socio-demographic factors and smoking behavior, such as number of failed smoking cessation and duration of abstinence in Iranian population.

Methods: A self-administered questionnaire survey of 673 participants was conducted in a local government health-care center. The questionnaire included items on socio-demographic information including, age, marital status, education, income, and job. Furthermore, information on smoking cigarettes including number of smoking per day, duration of smoking, cigarettes brand, nicotine concentration, and history of cessation was obtained.

Results: Mean ± SD of age and daily cigarette consumption were 39.7 ± 1.1 and 22.1 ± 1.1 respectively. Failure rate of smoking cessation was higher in the lower age group (odds ratios [OR] 2.9; 95% confidence intervals [CI] 1.1, 7.7) and less than 10 numbers smoking per day (OR 2.4; 95% CI 1.3, 4.5) and duration of smoking more than 30 years (OR 3.4; 95% CI 1.2, 9.3) and foreign cigarette brand (OR 1.8; 95% CI 1.1, 2.7). Length time of cessation was prominent in participants with lower age group (OR 5.4; 95% CI 1.3, 22.1), and less than 10 numbers smoking per day (OR 2.7; 95% CI 1.5, 4.9) and lower in smokers with duration of smoking more than 10 and 10-19 years (OR 0.32; 95% CI 0.12, 0.89), (OR 0.34; 95% CI 0.17, 0.76), respectively.

Conclusions: The above results suggest that there are a significant association between socio-demographic factors and smoking-related behaviors in the Iranian population, consistent with previous reports world-wide. These factors should be considered to have appropriate public-health and policy response.