The longitudinal, bidirectional relationships between parent reports of child secondhand smoke exposure and child smoking trajectories

This study examines the longitudinal relationships between child smoking and secondhand smoke exposure (SHSe). Participants were 222 parent–child dyads. The parents smoked, had a child with (48%) or without asthma, and were enrolled in a smoking/health intervention. Parent-reported child SHSe was measured at baseline and 4, 6, and 12-month follow-ups; self-reported child smoking was assessed at these points and at 2-months. A parallel process growth model was used. Baseline child SHSe and smoking were correlated (r = 0.30). Changes in child SHSe and child smoking moved in tandem as evidenced by a correlation between the linear slopes of child smoking and SHSe (r = 0.32), and a correlation between the linear slope of child smoking and the quadratic slope of child SHSe (r = − 0.44). Results may inform interventions with the potential to reduce child SHSe and smoking among children at increased risk due to their exposure to parental smoking.</p

Finishing the euchromatic sequence of the human genome

The sequence of the human genome encodes the genetic instructions for human physiology, as well as rich information about human evolution. In 2001, the International Human Genome Sequencing Consortium reported a draft sequence of the euchromatic portion of the human genome. Since then, the international collaboration has worked to convert this draft into a genome sequence with high accuracy and nearly complete coverage. Here, we report the result of this finishing process. The current genome sequence (Build 35) contains 2.85 billion nucleotides interrupted by only 341 gaps. It covers ∼99% of the euchromatic genome and is accurate to an error rate of ∼1 event per 100,000 bases. Many of the remaining euchromatic gaps are associated with segmental duplications and will require focused work with new methods. The near-complete sequence, the first for a vertebrate, greatly improves the precision of biological analyses of the human genome including studies of gene number, birth and death. Notably, the human enome seems to encode only 20,000-25,000 protein-coding genes. The genome sequence reported here should serve as a firm foundation for biomedical research in the decades ahead

Race, sex, and physician communication about tobacco as predictors of adolescent smoking trajectories in a primarily African American sample

This study identified latent classes of adolescent smoking and examined race, gender, and physician communication (PC) as predictors of class membership. Data were drawn from five waves of a large (N = 3,049), diverse (82.9% African American) study. Several latent classes were identified: nonsmoker, quitter, early-onset escalating smoking, early-onset stable high smoking, late-onset smoking, and declining smoking. Males, Whites, and teens who received PC were more likely to be in classes with more smoking. Our study identified several youth smoking patterns and differences in smoking based on race, gender, and receipt of PC

Physician advice to adolescents about smoking: Who gets advised and who benefits most?

Purpose: The Clinical Practice Guidelines instruct physicians to ask their patients about smoking and to advise against tobacco use. Physicians are urged especially to attend to racial minorities and teens because of these groups\u27 increased susceptibility to smoking. Research on race and physician advice against smoking has produced contradictory findings. The purpose of this study is to clarify the relationships between physician communication about tobacco, race, and smoking among adolescents. Methods: This cross-sectional retrospective study explored (1) racial differences in rates of receiving physician communication and (2) whether the relationship between physician communication and smoking among adolescents was moderated by race. Multiple measures of smoking status were used (e.g., intentions to quit, quit attempts, quits, relapse status). We used a large (N = 5,154), predominately African-American (82.9%) sample of 11th graders. Results: Regular smokers were more likely to be screened about smoking. African Americans were more frequently advised against tobacco than Caucasians. Among African Americans, nonsmokers were most likely to be both screened and advised; among Caucasians, regular were most likely to be screened and advised. Overall, physician intervention was associated with greater benefits for young African Americans, including fewer intentions to smoke, greater likelihood of quitting, and less relapse. Conclusions: Physician communication about smoking may hold particular promise for African-American teens, reducing health disparities because of racial differences in smoking-related mortality and morbidity. Physicians should be encouraged to screen and advise all young people about tobacco, regardless of race or smoking status

The role of caregiver social support, depressed mood, and perceived stress in changes in pediatric secondhand smoke exposure and asthma functional morbidity following an asthma exacerbation

OBJECTIVE: Caregiver depressed mood and stress are associated with increased child asthma functional morbidity (AFM) and secondhand smoke exposure (SHSe), while social support (SS) reduces risk. This study extends previous literature by examining: (1) longitudinal patterns of pediatric AFM and SHSe and (2) how caregiver stress, depressed mood, and SS are related to child SHSe and AFM changes. METHODS: Participants were 334 caregivers who smoked, had a child with asthma, and who were enrolled in a smoking cessation induction/asthma intervention. SHSe and AFM were measured at baseline and 4, 6, and 12 months. All measures were caregiver self-report. We used an autoregressive latent trajectory model to examine the intercept, linear, and quadratic growth factors and autoregressive and cross-lagged effects of SHSe and AFM. RESULTS: After an asthma exacerbation, decreases in child AFM and SHSe were followed by respective increases over time. Child SHSe at 4-months and 6-months predicted subsequent child AFM. Autoregressive paths were only significant for AFM. Higher baseline caregiver depressed mood and stress predicted higher baseline child AFM, but not other growth factors. Higher baseline caregiver self-esteem SS was only associated with lower baseline child AFM and fewer increases in AFM across time. Exploratory analyses indicated higher baseline caregiver depressed mood and stress were associated with less favorable changes in child SHSe and AFM. CONCLUSIONS: Caregiver depressed mood, stress, and SS should be considered when addressing pediatric SHSe and AFM. Caregiver support may be needed to maintain intervention gains

Tobacco Use and Exposure Among Youth Undergoing Cancer Treatment

Introduction: Adolescents with cancer are susceptible to the health consequences associated with secondhand smoke exposure (SHSE) and tobacco use. The present study compared tobacco use, exposure, and risk factors between patients and population peers. Method: Self-reported data on tobacco use, SHSE, and tobacco-related risk factors were drawn from a pediatric oncology hospital and the National Youth Tobacco Survey. Conditional logistic regression was used to estimate odds ratios for patients and control subjects. Results: Patients were as likely to have tried tobacco and report home SHSE as control subjects. Patients were more likely to report car SHSE, less likely to report that SHSE is harmful, and less likely to report home smoking bans. Discussion: Patients experienced SHSE, tobacco use, and tobacco-related risk factors at rates greater than or equal to control subjects. These results provide support for consideration of intervention targets, health status, and delivery mechanisms, particularly by health care providers, when developing comprehensive tobacco control strategies

Longitudinal smoking patterns and adult cardiometabolic risk among African Americans.

Objective: To better understand mechanisms influencing health in African Americans (AAs), the aims of this study were (a) to identify longitudinal cigarette smoking classes among AAs across adolescence and into young adulthood; (b) to identify risk factors for smoking and how cardiometabolic health in adulthood differs by smoking class; and (c) to investigate whether smoking mediates the relation between adolescent risk factors and adult cardiometabolic health. Method: This study used 4 waves of nationally representative data, restricted to an AA subsample (N = 2,009). Participants self-reported on multilevel risk factors in adolescence and smoking across adolescence and young adulthood; cardiometabolic risk was assessed in adulthood. Growth mixture modeling and structural equation modeling were conducted. Results: Five classes emerged: nonsmoker; early onset, heavier smoking; later onset; early onset, light smoking; and maturing out or declining smoking. Predictors of class membership included living with individuals who smoke, having friends who smoke, and limited access to medical care. The early onset, light smoking class had the greatest cardiometabolic risk. Smoking class mediated the relation between living with people who smoke in adolescence and adult cardiometabolic risk. Conclusions: Nuanced smoking patterns among AAs were identified, and 23% fell into classes characterized by an early onset and persistent smoking trajectory. The early onset, light smoking class had the greatest cardiometabolic risk in adulthood. The results suggest unique protective factors may be present for youth who remain nonsmokers even when their family smokes. Results have implications for health promotion and tobacco prevention efforts among AA families. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2020 APA, all rights reserved

Physician intervention for improving tobacco control among parents who use tobacco

Research has demonstrated that parents who smoke are often inadvertent sources of their children s first cigarettes. Teaching parents to restrict their tobacco may give pediatricians another method for helping parents who are not ready to quit smoking. This purpose of this study was to determine the feasibility of a program training pediatricians to discuss tobacco control with smoking parents and to examine changes in parents tobacco control after the physician intervention. One month after the intervention by pediatricians, parents reported significantly improved tobacco control. They were more likely to count their packs and cigarettes and to keep their tobacco products at work and on their person. Parents reported restricting household control of adult smoking, and children were exposed to significantly less secondhand smoke. These results showed that it is possible to integrate advice about tobacco control into a busy pediatric practice and to improve parents restrictions of their tobacco products