Socio-demographic variations in smoking status among Australians aged >= 18: multivariate results from the 1995 National Health Survey

Objective: To determine the association between socio-demographic variables and smoking status in a national sample of Australians aged 18. Method: The data came from the 1995 National Health Survey (NHS), which was conducted by the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS). Information was co llected from 20,165 females and 18,948 males using face-to-face interviews. The dependent variable was smoking status distinguishing regular smokers f rom occasional, ex-smokers and never-smokers. Multiple logistic regression was used to examine the association of smoking status with gender, age, mar ital status, region of residence, country of birth and three socioeconomic measures. Results: Analyses showed that gender, age, marital status, country of birth and socio-economic position were significantly related to smoking status. The odds of being a smoker were largest for respondents who were 20-34 year s old, were not married, had a low socioeconomic standing, and were born in the Middle East, southern and western Europe for men, and the United Kingd om/Ireland and western Europe for women. The results also revealed that the geographic measure of socio-economic status had a stronger association wit h smoking likelihood than the individual level indicators (education and in come), suggesting the importance of the social environment. Conclusion: There is substantial sociodemographic variability in smoking st atus. Implication: Of groups identified as having higher smoking rates, the socio economically disadvantaged groups have the highest priority for targeted ca mpaigns.