Why nurses smoke: a review of the literature

The smoking behaviour of nurses has been widely debated in the context of their professional role and responsibilities. There has been much speculation about why nurses smoke and possible explanations include a stressful nursing environment, peer pressure and socio economic status and education. This paper provides an overview of the literature which offers insights into the reasons why nurses smoke and compares the findings from this literature with those studies examining the smoking behaviour of women in general and young women in particular. This review reveals that many students take up smoking before commencing their training and the factors which influence nurses smoking are similar to those that influence similar groups of females in the general population.