Abstract
Background: This study aimed to examine the association between environmental
tobacco smoke (ETS) and avoidance of tobacco smoke among pregnant non-smoking
women.
Methods: A cross-sectional study was used to obtain a representative sample of nonsmoking pregnant women who attended health clinics (n = 661) six states in Malaysia.
The durations of ETS exposure within and outside of the home were obtained by selfreport. Exposure to ETS was assessed by the second-hand smoke (SHS) avoidance
subscale. The analyses were conducted using logistic regression adjusted for
demographic variables and other variables.
Results: Among non-smoking pregnant women, the prevalence of ETS exposure was
66.3%. The overall knowledge of ETS was good (>50%). The odds of ETS exposure
were higher among those in the low-salary (RM1000-RM1999) group (OR=2.37; 95%
CI=1.22, 4.62) and those with a history of chronic disease (OR=2.47; 95% CI=1.09,
5.62), whereas ETS exposure was significantly lower among those working full time
during pregnancy (OR=0.31; 95% CI=0.17, 0.59). In the multivariate model, compared
with non-ETS-exposed individuals, ETS-exposed individuals showed significantly
different avoidance behaviour in situations that involved speaking to smokers who
were smoking in same room (OR=2.31; 95%CI= 1.26, 4.21), sitting in a smoking
section on public transport (OR=2.15; 95% CI= 1.07, 4.34) and frequently associating
with smokers (OR=3.01; 95% CI=1.14-8.30).
Conclusions: Our findings revealed that knowledge about ETS exposure failed to
manifest as avoidance behaviour. The knowledge was good but avoidance was poor,
especially among women frequently exposed to ETS.
Siti Munira Yasin, Khairul Mizan Taib, Mohammad Idris Zamhuri. (2018) Avoidance of environmental tobacco smoke among nonsmoking pregnant women in Malaysia, Asian Journal of Agriculture and Biology, Volume 6, Special Issue.
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