Cigarette smoking and exposure to environmental tobacco smoke in China: the international collaborative study of cardiovascular disease in Asia.

OBJECTIVES

We estimated the prevalence of cigarette smoking and the extent of environmental tobacco smoke exposure (ETS) in the general population in China.

METHODS

A cross-sectional survey was conducted on a nationally representative sample of 15540 Chinese adults aged 35-74 years in 2000-2001. Information on cigarette smoking was obtained by trained interviewers using a standard questionnaire.

RESULTS

The prevalence of current cigarette smoking was much higher among men (60.2%) than among women (6.9%). Among nonsmokers, 12.1% of men and 51.3% of women reported exposure to ETS at home, and 26.7% of men and 26.2% of women reported exposure to ETS in their workplaces. On the basis of our findings, 147358000 Chinese men and 15895000 Chinese women aged 35-74 years were current cigarette smokers, 8658000 men and 108402000 women were exposed to ETS at home, and 19072000 men and 55372000 women were exposed to ETS in their workplaces.

CONCLUSIONS

The high prevalence of cigarette smoking and environmental tobacco smoke exposure in the Chinese population indicates an urgent need for smoking prevention and cessation efforts.