A Study on Smoking among Korean Rural Residents / 예방의학회지

ABSTRACT

The present study was conducted to investigate smoking status and the relationship of smoking to hypertension and disease 1,504 subjects who were 30-year-old age in Kyungsan Gunm Jyungpook province, during the period of 12 months from March 1978 to February 1979. The results obtained are summarized as follows of 1,504 subjects, 52.2 percent smoked. The percentage of males smoking showed 84.8 and the percentage of females was 30.7. There were no statistically significant differences between the rate smoking and educational levels. Protestants demonstrated lower rates of smoking compared with other groups. Regarding the age started to smoke, 66.4 percent of male smokers and 16.9 percent of female smokers commenced smoking before the age of 19. In the regard to the average number of cigarettes smoked daily, 45.8 percent of male smokers consumed some 20 cigarettes and 24.1 percent of female smokers consumed some 10 cigarettes. 3.2 percent of male smokers smoked 40 or more cigarettes a day. Alcohol consumption was closely associated with smoking . 90.7 percent of male alcohol drinkers and 60.1 percent of female drinkers smoked. Cigarette smokers have higher rates of ailments than nonsmokers as a whole. The complaints of cough with sputum and shortness of breath revealed higher rates among smokers than among nonsmokers. Frequency of illnesses showed higher for smokers than for nonsmokers. Smokers were more likely than nonsmokers to suffer from chronic obstructive lung diseases such as chronic bronchitis, asthma, and emphysema. Abnormal systolic blood pressure(>160mmHg) and diastolic(>100) revealed significantly higher among smokers than among nonsmokers.