Smoking Behavior of Chinese Smoking Expectant Fathers, and Predictors of Smoking Abstinence after Their Partner Got Pregnant: A Cross-Sectional Study

Abstract

Background and Objectives: Long-term secondhand smoke can negatively affect the health of pregnant women, fetuses, and newborns. About 40% of Chinese expectant fathers are current smokers and rarely quit smoking. However, no intervention exists in practice. To guide the development of effective interventions, this study aimed to evaluate the smoking behavior and explore predictors of smoking abstinence among smoking expectant fathers after their partner got pregnant. Methods: A cross-sectional survey was conducted. Expectant fathers who smoked at least one cigarette per day for 1-month within the past 12-month were invited to participate in this study. A total of 466 participants were recruited and asked to complete a structured questionnaire that assesses their smoking behaviors before and after their partners got pregnant. LASSO regression was performed to select features associated with smoking abstinence. Multivariable logistic regression was conducted to identify predictors of expectant fathers’ abstinence of smoking after their partners got pregnant. Results: The results indicated that 329 (70.6%) of the participants were current smokers, while 144 (30.9%) were quitters. The multivariable logistic regression analysis found that first-time expectant father (OR 2.08; 95% CI 1.02 to 3.85; p= 0.046), severe dysfunction family (OR 0.48; 95% CI 0.24 to 0.95; p=0.036), knowledge on the health hazards of smoking among the smokers themselves (OR 1.39; 95% CI 1.24 to 1.58; p<0.001), knowledge on the health hazards of SHS among the pregnant women (OR 1.46; 95% CI 1.09 to 1.97; p<0.001), knowledge on the health hazards of SHS among the fetus and newborns (OR 1.58; 95% CI 1.25 to 2.03; p<0.001) were significant predictors of expectant fathers’ smoking abstinence after their partners got pregnant. Conclusions: Finding in this study will aid the development of appropriate and innovative smoking cessation interventions that can promote smoking cessation among smoking expectant fathers.