Prevalence and Indicators of Household Smoking Bans Among American Indians

More than 58 million nonsmokers in the U.S. encounter secondhand smoke that leads to tobacco-related diseases and deaths every year, making voluntary household smoking bans an important public health goal. American Indians/Alaska Natives are rarely included in research related to household smoking bans. Further, most studies dichotomize household smoking bans into complete bans versus partial/no bans, rendering it impossible to determine if partial and no bans are associated with different or similar risk factors. Using the 2014 Cherokee Nation American Indian Adult Tobacco Survey, our study sought to identify prevalence of household smoking bans, their extent, and their correlates in an American Indian population. This cross-sectional analysis used multinomial logistic regression to determine correlates of complete, partial, and no household smoking bans. Results indicated that approximately 84% of Cherokee households have a complete ban. Younger age, female gender, higher education, higher household income, respondent’s nonsmoking status, good health, better awareness of harms related to secondhand smoke, visits with a healthcare provider within the past year, and children in the home were positively and significantly associated with complete household smoking bans. Additionally, there were notable differences between correlates related to partial bans and no bans. These results provide insight for the development of more appropriate interventions for American Indian households that do not have a complete household smoking ban.