Prevalence and Patterns of Environmental Tobacco Smoke Exposures among California Teachers

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Abstract
Purpose.: This study describes the prevalence and patterns of environmental tobacco smoke (ETS) exposure in a large, well-defined cohort of professional, female school employees in California. Design.: This is a cross-sectional study based on survey responses from members of the California Teachers Study (CTS) cohort. Subjects.: The analyses focused on lifetime nonsmokers (N = 61,899) in the CTS cohort who responded to detailed questions on lifetime ETS exposures in the home, workplace, and other social settings. Measures.: Demographic characteristics, smoking status, and ETS exposure were based on self-reported data from two mailed surveys. Prevalence estimates within the cohort were compared with those from the California Behavioral Risk Factor Survey and the California Adult Tobacco Survey. Results.: ETS exposures were highest for never smokers born in the 1930s (78% in the home, 66% in the workplace, and 48% in other social settings) and steadily declined among participants born in later years. ETS exposure from spousal smoking peaked during the 1950s (37%). In the 1980s, the workplace (28%) replaced the household (19%) as the primary exposure setting. Conclusions.: Consideration of these patterns in the prevalence of ETS exposures is important in the interpretation and design of tobacco-related health studies.