Despite the surge in COVID-19 cases across the globe, an online survey showed that the number of people smoking cigars has not gone down. For the purpose of the survey, 800 cigar smokers volunteered. The results showed that the majority of people intend to quit smoking due to the fear of health risks in the case of COVID-19 contraction. However, more than twice the volunteers reported having increased their tobacco usage ever since the beginning of the pandemic.
The risk of cigar smokers contracting COVID-19, their behaviors, and the intentions to quit during the pandemic was examined by researchers at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill. The findings for the same have been published in the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health. Sarah Kowitt, Ph.D., MPH, and the lead author of the study, says, “We are not sure why many participants reported increasing their tobacco use, but it is possible that they are stressed or anxious, they are bored at home, they stockpiled tobacco products in advance of sheltering-in-place orders, or they’re not able to access evidence-based cessation resources like pharmacotherapy or behavioral support”. The senior author of the study is Dr. Adam Goldstein who’s the director of UNC Tobacco Intervention Programs and professor of Family Medicine at UNC School of Medicine.
The research was conducted for two weeks following April 23 as a part of an online study examining the health effects of cigars. The average age of the volunteers was 39.3 years. Almost 66.6% of the individuals were white and 48.9% of them were women. All the volunteers accepted using cigars the last 30 days and some of them also used other tobacco products. Only 17.8% of volunteers reported a decrease in their tobacco usage whereas 40.9% reported an increase. Cigar smoking is associated with cancers and other multiple side effects.
Another finding that amused the researchers was related to Black or African Americans. Reports suggest that Black people who used a quitline (a telephone-based tobacco cessation service) had a higher intention of quitting during COVID-19. Such individuals had also made higher attempts to quit smoking during the lockdown.
The research also highlights the importance of helping smokers to quit. It also highlights the implications of smoking tobacco on COVID-19 patients. Therefore, we all need to encourage those who want to quit smoking and support them as much as they need.