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Racial differences in exposure to environmental tobacco smoke among children

Stephen E Wilson1, Robert S Kahn, Jane Khoury

  • 1Division of General Internal Medicine, University of Cincinnati, Cincinnati, Ohio, USA. Stephen.Wilson@uc.edu

Environmental Health Perspectives
|March 4, 2005
PubMed

Insights

African-American children have higher cotinine levels, a marker of tobacco exposure, than white children, even with less reported exposure. This disparity may explain higher rates of tobacco-related illnesses in this group.

Area of Science:

  • Environmental Health
  • Pediatric Health
  • Toxicology

Background:

  • Environmental tobacco smoke (ETS) exposure is a significant cause of illness and death in U.S. children.
  • African-American children experience disproportionately higher rates of tobacco-related illnesses despite lower reported ETS exposure.
  • Higher serum cotinine levels, a biomarker of tobacco smoke exposure, are observed in African-American children compared to white children.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate whether African-American children exhibit higher serum and hair cotinine levels compared to white children.
  • To determine if these differences persist after accounting for ETS exposure and housing characteristics.
  • To explore the relationship between housing characteristics and cotinine levels in children with asthma.

Main Methods:

  • A sample of 222 children diagnosed with asthma was analyzed.
  • Serum and hair cotinine levels were measured as biomarkers of tobacco smoke exposure.
  • ETS exposure was assessed using a validated survey, and detailed housing information was collected.

Main Results:

  • African-American children showed significantly higher mean levels of both serum cotinine (1.41 ng/mL vs. 0.97 ng/mL) and hair cotinine (0.25 ng/mg vs. 0.07 ng/mg) compared to white children.
  • These disparities remained significant after adjusting for reported ETS exposure, housing size, and other demographic factors.
  • Housing volume was associated with cotinine levels but did not fully account for the observed racial difference.

Conclusions:

  • Despite lower reported exposure to environmental tobacco smoke (ETS), African-American children with asthma have significantly higher serum and hair cotinine levels than white children.
  • The findings suggest an unexplained disparity in tobacco smoke exposure or metabolism between racial groups.
  • Further research is needed to identify the underlying causes and consequences of these elevated cotinine levels to address health disparities in tobacco-related illnesses.

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