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Original Articles

Pre- and post-immigration factors associated with cigarette use among young adult recent Latinx immigrants during their initial year in the U.S

ORCID Icon, , , ORCID Icon, , & show all
Pages 17-26 | Received 30 Nov 2020, Accepted 31 Mar 2021, Published online: 19 May 2021
 

ABSTRACT

Background: Evidence indicates escalating rates of cigarette use among foreign-born Latinx as their time in the U.S increases. As such, it’s important to understand shifts in pre- to post-immigration smoking patterns early in the immigration process and its associated factors.

Objectives: To examine 1) cigarette use among recent Latinx immigrants (RLIs) during their initial year in the U.S.; 2) whether cigarette use after immigration is influenced by smoking patterns in immigrant’s country of origin; and 3) associations between pre/post immigration sociocultural factors and changes in cigarette use after immigration.

Methods: Baseline data were utilized from an on-going longitudinal study of 540 young adult (50% females) RLIs. Inclusion criteria was being between ages 18 and 34, residing in Miami-Dade County, Florida, and having immigrated from a Latin American country within the past year

Results: Approximately 31% of participants reported being smokers in their country of origin while 26% were current smokers (while residing in the U.S). Post-immigration cigarette use was substantially influenced by country of origin cigarette use (V = .68); 84% of pre-immigration smokers reported no change in smoking frequency, while 11% lowered and 6% increased their cigarette use post-immigration. Reduction in smoking after immigration was more likely among participants with higher pre-immigration social support (aOR = 1.87) and less likely among those residing in high-crime neighborhoods (aOR = .84).

Conclusion: Interventions aimed to discourage cigarette use should begin early in the immigration process and account for RLIs’ pre-immigration smoking patterns. Interpersonal supports and neighborhood contextual factors should be considered when developing smoking cessation programs with this population.

Disclosure statement

The authors report no conflict of interest.

Supplementary material

Supplemental data for this article can be accessed on the publisher’s website.

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism of the National Institutes of Health under [Grant Number R01AA025720 - 01A1]. The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the National Institutes of Health.

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