Neighborhood Characteristics, Financial Insecurity, and Food Insecurity Among U.S. Children with Secondhand and Thirdhand Smoke Exposure

Study One AbstractBackground: Home tobacco smoke exposure (TSE) and negative neighborhood characteristics adversely affect children’s health. The study objective was to examine the associations of child TSE status and neighborhood characteristics among U.S. school-aged children. Methods: We conducted a secondary analysis of the 2018-2019 National Survey of Children’s Health data including 17,300 U.S. children ages 6-11 years old. We categorized children’s home TSE status into: (1) no TSE: child did not live with a smoker; (2) THS exposure alone: child lived with a smoker who did not smoke inside the home; and (3) SHS and THS exposure: child lived with a smoker who smoked inside the home. We conducted a series of weighted linear, logistic, and ordinal regression analyses to assess the associations between child TSE status and neighborhood characteristics, adjusting for covariates. Results: Overall, 13.2% and 1.7% of children were exposed to home THS alone and home SHS and THS, respectively. Compared to children with no TSE, children with home THS exposure alone (ß=-0.27, 95%CI=-0.38, 0.15, p