142nd APHA Annual Meeting and Exposition

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302274
Impact of Smoke-/Tobacco-free Policies on Student Tobacco-Use Rates at Postsecondary Institutions in Minnesota

142nd APHA Annual Meeting and Exposition (November 15 - November 19, 2014): http://www.apha.org/events-and-meetings/annual
Sunday, November 16, 2014

Meghan Mason, MPH , Boynton Health Service, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN
Katherine Lust, PhD, MPH, RD , Boynton Health Service, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN
Julia Sanem, MPH , Boynton Health Service, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN
David Golden, BA, BS , Boynton Health Service, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN
John Kingsbury, PhD , Office of Statewide Health Improvement Initiatives, Minnesota Department of Health, St. Paul, MN
Maria Rudie, MPH , Office of Statewide Health Improvement Initiatives, Minnesota Department of Health, St. Paul, MN
Background:  Current tobacco use among Minnesota residents is lower than the national average, but current smoking rates remain high among 18-24 year-olds (21.8%). Because nearly half of all Minnesota residents pursue a degree in higher education, this study examined whether the implementation of tobacco-free campus policies reduced tobacco-use among college students.

Methods:  This study combined data on 33 postsecondary institutions in Minnesota from two sources: the annual College Student Health Survey (2007-2013) and a campus tobacco policy assessment conducted by Minnesota Statewide Health Improvement Program grantees. Cross-sectional and longitudinal analyses were conducted to examine differences in current and daily tobacco-use, on-campus tobacco use, and on-campus secondhand smoke exposure by campus tobacco-use policy (i.e., smoke-/tobacco-free or designated tobacco use areas). Chi-square tests and generalized estimating equations were used to test for policy effects.

Results: Results of the cross-sectional study showed that campuses with smoke-/tobacco-free policies had lower current tobacco-use rates compared to schools with designated tobacco-use areas. The number of months that a school’s tobacco-use policy had been in place was also negatively associated with student tobacco-use rates such that longer policy duration was associated with lower tobacco-use rates. Results of the longitudinal study showed an overall decrease in student tobacco-use and secondhand smoke exposure rates, and that this effect was strongest among schools that implemented a fully smoke-/tobacco-free campus policy during the study period.

Conclusions: The implementation of a fully smoke-/tobacco-free campus policy may be an effective method for reducing tobacco use and secondhand smoke exposure among college students.

Learning Areas:

Public health or related laws, regulations, standards, or guidelines
Public health or related public policy

Learning Objectives:
Describe the trends in tobacco-use in the college-aged population between 2007 and 2013 with respect to sex, age, and education. Explain how demographic factors intersect with postsecondary institutions’ tobacco-use policies to influence students’ tobacco-use rates. Discuss the challenges of comparing campus tobacco-use policies and student tobacco-use rates over time. Identify the types of tobacco-use policies that had the largest effect on student tobacco-use rates over time in this population.

Keyword(s): Tobacco Use, College Students

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

Qualified on the content I am responsible for because: My role as a graduate research assistant on this project was to apply my years of training in Epidemiology to a policy question of immediate impact in our community. I am most familiar with the dataset used for this analysis, able to best articulate our methodology, and well-versed in the discussion of tobacco-free campus policies in the State of Minnesota.
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.