Fooyin Journal of Health Sciences
Volume 2, Issue 3 , Pages 72-84, August 2010

A Successful Intervention to Reduce Cigarillo Use Among Baltimore Youth

  • Fei-Kai Syu

      Affiliations

    • Division of Medical Research, Fooyin University Hospital, Pingtung, Taiwan
    • School of Public Health, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, United States
    • ,
  • Ming-Yii Huang

      Affiliations

    • Department of Radiation Oncology, Kaohsiung Medical University Hospital, Faculty of Medicine, College of Medicine, Kaohsiung Medical University, Kaohsiung, Taiwan
    • ,
  • Jon-Jong Huang

      Affiliations

    • Department of Family Medicine, Yuan's General Hospital, Kaohsiung, Taiwan
    • Corresponding Author InformationCorresponding author. Department of Family Medicine, Yuan's General Hospital, No. 162, Chenggong 1st Road, Kaohsiung 802, Taiwan

Received 15 April 2010; received in revised form 7 September 2010; accepted 14 September 2010.

Article Outline

A recent survey demonstrated that in 30 days, almost a quarter (23.9%) of African Americans aged 18-24 years in Baltimore smoked a Black & Mild, a popular cigarillo brand at least once. The theory of reasoned action (TRA) is the best-fitting theoretical model to use for intervention because it has been shown to be a good predictor of smoking behavior among adolescents. We have devised a campaign that involves both active advertising and the creation of an informational website, which can be used to learn about the consequences of cigarillo smoking. Smokers have decreased the number of cigarillos smoked per day by 1, and in particular, there was a dramatic decrease in smokers in Baltimore after the campaign. Particularly, positive impression in both groups tended to have differences in statistics before and after the campaign. In conclusion, our results show that the campaign was successful. We intend to expand it to other cities throughout the United States where cigarillo use is prevalent.

Key Words:  African American , Baltimore , cigarillos , inoculation theory , theory of reasoned action

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PII: S1877-8607(11)60002-7

doi:10.1016/S1877-8607(11)60002-7

Fooyin Journal of Health Sciences
Volume 2, Issue 3 , Pages 72-84, August 2010

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