The impact of immigration status on tobacco use among Chinese-American adults in Texas.
OBJECTIVE
This study analyzed the impact of immigration status on current tobacco use among adult Chinese-Americans living in Texas.


METHODS
A survey was administered in Chinese and English in 2004 to assess tobacco use among Chinese-American adults using a stratified probability sample from two large metropolitan areas in Texas. Data were adjusted for unequal probability of selection and weighted to provide state-wide estimates for Chinese-Americans in Texas.


RESULTS
The study sample was comprised of 1,054 Chinese-American adults. The overall current smoking rate was 11.1% with men's rates much higher (16.1%) than women's (6.7%). Lower household income and education increased smoking among males but more educated females had a tendency to smoke more. Although overall smoking rate among Chinese-Americans was significantly lower than the general Texas population (20.6%), smoking rate among recent immigrant men (<5 years in the U.S.) was alarmingly higher (28.0%). U.S.-born Chinese-American men's smoking rate (25.0%) is similar to that of their U.S.-born counterparts (23.7%). U.S.-born Chinese-American men initiated smoking 4 years earlier (13.8 years) than their immigrant counterparts.


CONCLUSIONS
Although Chinese-Americans in Texas had overall lower smoking rates than the general population, the high smoking rates among recently immigrated men emphasize the need for cessation activities targeting this group.
Hu
Shaohua S
SS
Division of Adult and Community Health, Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, GA 30341-3717, USA. shu@cdc.gov
Pallonen
Unto E
UE
Meshack
Angela F
AF
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D001213:Asian / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D002681:China / Q000208:ethnology; D016001:Confidence Intervals; D054242:Emigrants and Immigrants / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D005260:Female; D007722:Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice; D006306:Health Surveys; D006801:Humans; D016015:Logistic Models; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D015999:Multivariate Analysis; D015995:Prevalence; D011594:Psychometrics; D012737:Sex Factors; D016540:Smoking Cessation / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D013781:Texas / Q000453:epidemiology; D014029:Tobacco Use Disorder / Q000453:epidemiology*; D014481:United States / Q000453:epidemiology; D055815:Young Adult