American journal of preventive medicine
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About 25% of people who currently smoke cigarettes in the U.S. smoke nondaily, and relatively little is known about their intentions or attempts to quit. Active surveillance is essential to identify services needed to support smoking cessation efforts and reduce the burden of disease. ⋯ Given the substantial number of adults who smoke nondaily in the U.S. and their interest in quitting, developing targeted interventions and communication is an important public health priority.
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Quantifying the use of emerging tobacco products such as nicotine pouches (NPs) and heated tobacco products (HTPs) is crucial for informing public health interventions and measuring their potential effects on tobacco use morbidity, mortality and benefits from complete tobacco cessation. ⋯ Continued surveillance of emerging tobacco products such as HTPs and NPs can inform public health approaches and support future research to better quantify the health consequences from these products.
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As patients become increasingly involved in healthcare decision-making, it is important to examine the drivers behind patient choice of doctor (PCOD); the initial decision can have lasting impacts on patients' trust in providers and health outcomes. However, limited studies have explored PCOD relative to socioeconomic status (SES) or health disparity. This review identified similar preferences and varied decision criteria in PCOD across SES groups. ⋯ Patients' decision criteria varied by SES, even under national systems intended for universal access, indicating the impacts of social determinants and structural inequities. Health education supporting patient decision-making and research on how SES affects PCOD and outcomes could help reduce health disparity.
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The number of U.S. adults who own and carry a firearm for self-defense is rising. Research has established that owning or carrying a firearm increases the risk of injury and death for firearm owners and the people in their lives. This study sought to better understand this paradox by estimating associations of perceived specific and diffuse threats with firearm behaviors among U.S. adults. ⋯ Perceived threats are associated with firearm behaviors among U.S. men, even after accounting for the actual violence they report experiencing or witnessing.