Decreases in smoking prevalence in Asian communities served by the Racial and Ethnic Approaches to Community Health (REACH) project

Abstract

Objectives: We examined trends in smoking prevalence from 2002 through 2006 in 4 Asian communities served by the Racial and Ethnic Approaches to Community Health (REACH) intervention.

Methods: Annual survey data from 2002 through 2006 were gathered in 4 REACH Asian communities. Trends in the age-standardized prevalence of current smoking for men in 2 Vietnamese communities, 1 Cambodian community, and 1 Asian American/Pacific Islander (API) community were examined and compared with nationwide US and state-specific data from the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System.

Results: Prevalence of current smoking decreased dramatically among men in REACH communities. The reduction rate was significantly greater than that observed in the general US or API male population, and it was greater than reduction rates observed in the states in which REACH communities were located. There was little change in the quit ratio of men at the state and national levels, but there was a significant increase in quit ratios in the REACH communities, indicating increases in the proportions of smokers who had quit smoking.

Conclusions: Smoking prevalence decreased in Asian communities served by the REACH project, and these decreases were larger than nationwide decreases in smoking prevalence observed for the same period. However, disparities in smoking prevalence remain a concern among Cambodian men and non-English-speaking Vietnamese men; these subgroups continue to smoke at a higher rate than do men nationwide.

FIGURE 1

Five-year trends of age-standardized prevalence of current smoking among adult men in the US general population and in 4 US Asian communities: REACH, 2002–2006. Note. API = Asian American/Pacific Islander; BRFSS = Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System; REACH = Racial and Ethnic Approaches to Community Health. Vietnamese data were pooled for 2 Vietnamese communities in southern California targeted by REACH. Cambodian data were from a Cambodian community in Lowell, MA, targeted by REACH. Asian data were pooled for members of various API ethnic subgroups in King County, WA. General US population data were collected by the BRFSS. Data for Asian men collected by the BRFSS are not shown. Smoking prevalence among BRFSS Asian men was on average 7.4% lower than that among BRFSS US men, but the temporal changes were similar between the 2 groups.

FIGURE 2

Five-year trends of quit ratios among adult men in the US general population and in 4 US Asian communities: REACH, 2002–2006. Note. API = Asian American/Pacific Islander; BRFSS = Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System; REACH = Racial and Ethnic Approaches to Community Health. Vietnamese data were pooled for 2 Vietnamese communities in southern California targeted by REACH. Cambodian data were from a Cambodian community in Lowell, MA, targeted by REACH. Asian data were pooled for members of various API ethnic subgroups in King County, WA. General US population data were collected by the BRFSS. Data for Asian men collected by the BRFSS are not shown.

FIGURE 3

Five-year trends of age-standardized prevalence of current smoking among adult men, by language used during interviews with (a) Vietnamese respondents and the California general population and (b) Cambodian respondents and the Massachusetts general population: REACH, 2002–2006. Note. BRFSS = Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System; REACH = Racial and Ethnic Approaches to Community Health; Vietnamese data were pooled for 2 Vietnamese communities in southern California targeted by REACH. California data were state-specific data collected by the BRFSS. Cambodian data were from a Cambodian community in Lowell, MA, targeted by REACH. Massachusetts data were state-specific data collected by the BRFSS.