Understanding the associations among education, employment characteristics, and smoking

The current study examined the association between education level and smoking status in a community-based sample of working adults. Participants were enrolled at the University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center site of a cancer risk behavior reduction intervention delivered at the worksite. There was a strong educational gradient in smoking status. The prevalence of current smoking was almost threefold higher among individuals with <HS degree than among individuals with at least a college degree (37% versus 14%), while the percentage of never smokers among individuals with <HS degree was less than half that of individuals with at least a college degree (29% versus 60%). The educational gradient in smoking status was extremely robust and education uniquely contributed to the prediction of smoking status over and above the effects of demographics, job status, and job related characteristics. Identifying the mechanisms underlying this association as well as high risk subgroups of individuals with low education could contribute to reducing the educational gradient in smoking status and warrants further research attention.