278991
Assessing attitudes towards tobacco advertising in winooski, VT
Benjamin Brown,
University of Vermont College of Medicine, Burlington, VT
Eric Chang,
University of Vermont College of Medicine, Burlington, VT
Ian McDaniels,
University of Vermont College of Medicine, Burlington, VT
Olga Kuzina,
University of Vermont College of Medicine, Burlington, VT
Anisha Patel,
University of Vermont College of Medicine, Burlington, VT
Kate Nugent,
Winooski Coalition for a Safe and Peaceful Community, Winooski, VT
Burton Wilcke, PhD,
Department of Medical Laboratory and Radiation Sciences, University of Vermont, Burlington, VT
Jan K. Carney, MD, MPH,
Medicine, Robert Larner MD College of Medicine at the University of Vermont, Burlington, VT
Introduction. Smoking rates are 15% in Vermont and higher in low-income populations. Winooski, Vermont is vulnerable to high tobacco use rates; 23.6% of Winooski residents are low income. Tobacco advertising, which has been shown to have a direct, dose-dependent association with youth tobacco use, is highly prevalent in Winooski stores. Methods. In partnership with the Winooski Coalition for a Safe and Peaceful Community (WCSPC), College of Medicine students developed a survey to assess opinions of adult community members towards tobacco advertising and youth tobacco use in Winooski, VT. We administered the survey in three different settings: 1) sent home with students of the Winooski school district, 2) in-person at the parent-teacher conference day at the Winooski school district, and 3) in-person at the Winooski Community Health Fair. Results. 92 of 97 completed surveys were analyzed. Most respondents believe that tobacco advertising should not be allowed inside stores (66%) or outside stores (83%), youth smoking/tobacco use is a problem in Winooski (59%), store owners should show fewer advertisements in their stores (62%), and youth are influenced by tobacco advertising in stores (59%). Additionally, most respondents believe that tobacco products should not be sold in grocery stores (66%) or pharmacies (73%). Discussion. The majority of respondents believe youth smoking and tobacco use in Winooski is a problem and that store owners should decrease or eliminate tobacco advertising. Demonstration of community support for reduced tobacco advertising will be instrumental for achieving the goals of the statewide public health Small Changes, Big Impact initiative.
Learning Areas:
Administer health education strategies, interventions and programs
Advocacy for health and health education
Assessment of individual and community needs for health education
Planning of health education strategies, interventions, and programs
Public health or related education
Public health or related research
Learning Objectives:
Describe the impact of tobacco advertising on youth tobacco use
Discuss the benefits of collaboration with a community coalition to conduct community-based research
Describe attitudes toward tobacco advertising in adult community members in Winooski, Vermont
Keyword(s): Tobacco Policy, Adolescent Health
Presenting author's disclosure statement:Qualified on the content I am responsible for because: I was involved in the design, implemtation, analysis, writing, and presentation of this project.
Any relevant financial relationships? No
I agree to comply with the American Public Health Association Conflict of Interest and Commercial Support Guidelines,
and to disclose to the participants any off-label or experimental uses of a commercial product or service discussed
in my presentation.
