Certain Groups Less Likely to Quit Smoking

Though the level of nicotine addiction in the general population has somewhat decreased over the past decade, some groups have been left behind, in the sense that authorities failed to comprehend the specific factors that dictate their ability to quit smoking or not. These divisions of the population include those from minorities and various ethnic groups, as well as people suffering from psychiatric disorders, e! Science News reports. Details of this research appear in the latest issue of the Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, a publication of the American Psychological Association (APA).

Psychologists have reported over the past few months increased success rates – when reported to the general trend – in promoting a lower rate of nicotine addiction within these groups. This was done by tailoring existing therapies and prevention programs to the specific needs of these individuals, who therefore saw it easier to relate and find help in their effort to quit smoking. The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reported that, after a ten-year-long steady decline in smoking rates, the percentage of smokers in the nation increased from 19.8 to 20.6 between 2007 and 2008.

“One of the reasons smoking rates have remained stagnant is because these underserved groups of smokers have not been adequately targeted by research and treatment,” Brown University Medical School Centers for Behavioral and Preventive Medicine expert Belinda Borrelli, PhD, says. She adds that people most at risk of being overlooked by current approaches aimed at curbing smoking rates are those that smoke most, that have less access to treatments, and also those who, unwillingly or not, are constantly excluded from long-term treatment trials. It was additionally discovered in previous studies that people suffering from psychiatric disorders need therapies that are tailored to their specific conditions.

“We know cognitive-behavioral therapy helps people quit, but few studies have examined this treatment's effect on African-American smokers. Hopefully, our findings will encourage smoking cessation counselors and researchers to utilize cognitive-behavioral interventions in this underserved population,” says University of Miami expert Monica Webb, PhD, who is also the lead author of the journal entry. “Providing treatment that is focused on the health needs of the family, and delivered in a culturally tailored manner, has the potential to address health care disparities for Latino families,” Borrelli adds.