To further understand the popularity of this trend, researchers from the University of Texas at Austin looked at 9,789 women between the ages of 18 and 25 who were taken from the National Survey on Drug Use and Health, TIME reports.
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The study shows nearly 20 percent of all the participants and about 60 percent of current smokers fall under the “very light” smokers category, while nearly half of the current smokers did not smoke daily.
Very light and intermittent smoking – using cigarettes on some days but not others – was common among the women. Researchers have also found that they were just as likely to have gone through psychological distress or depression at some point during their life as heavy smokers.
It is a popular belief that light smoking is virtually harmless, but a recent study points out that this practice still comes with health risks.
Commenting on the study, Dr Len Horovitz, a lung specialist at Lenox Hill Hospital in New York City, told HealthDay that smoking at this level still carries health risks. “Advertising aimed at women attempts to associate smoking with independence, attractiveness, and sophistication, traits that are especially likely to appeal to young women”, the study said. This abundance of light smokers could be attributed to the anti-smoking movement, which persuaded people to quit smoking, which they might have done for a while, after which they figured that a few cigarettes will not cause as much dangers as hard-core smoking. Very light smokers have smoked 5 or less cigarettes per day in the last 30 days. “To meet the challenge of the tobacco industry, smoking intervention programs and policies directed at emerging-adult women need to be based on an understanding of the diverse characteristics…associated with very light smoking in this population”.
He said: ‘Even light smoking can triple the lifetime risk of heart disease.
Some people may become light smokers because they can’t afford to buy a lot of cigarettes, the researchers said.
For this reason, practitioners need to be sure to ask their patients, particularly young women, “When was the last time you used tobacco?”
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Patricia Folan is the director of the Center for Tobaccco Control, at North Shore-LIJ Health System, in Great Neck, NY. While more and more people are quitting their smoking habit, many more are finding solace in light smoking, that is often misinterpreted as being fairly risk free. To start with good one first, a decline has been witnessed in the overall smoking rates and average cigarette consumption across the United States. In addition, it can also refer to people who skip smoking some days of the week, but smoke on others.
