Using In-Home Air Quality Monitoring to Reduce Cannabis Secondhand Smoke Exposure in Children: Quantitative Pilot
Vincent Berardi1, Bradley N Collins2, Laura M Glynn1
1Department of Psychology, Crean College of Health and Behavioral Science, Chapman University, 1 University Drive, Orange, CA, 92866, United States, 1 (714) 516-5883.
Background:
An estimated 5 to 8 million US children live with a parent who uses cannabis, and most cannabis users report smoking cannabis inside their homes, placing children at risk for cannabis secondhand smoke (cSHS) exposure. Indoor air quality (IAQ) monitoring provides real-time feedback on airborne pollutants and has shown promise in reducing in-home tobacco secondhand smoke exposure, suggesting its potential as an effective harm reduction strategy for cSHS.
Objective:
This pilot study evaluated the feasibility, acceptability, and preliminary effectiveness of using low-cost, off-the-shelf IAQ monitors to increase caregivers' awareness of children's cSHS exposure risk and to change smoking behavior. Secondary aims were to assess participant engagement, perceived usefulness, and household communication regarding in-home cannabis smoking.
Methods:
Between February 2025 and April 2025, 14 adults who smoked cannabis indoors and lived with at least 1 child aged younger than 16 years were recruited primarily via targeted social media advertisements and completed a 3-week trial. Participants received an Awair Element IAQ monitor, printed health education materials, and text messaging prompts for brief surveys. The IAQ monitor continuously measured PM2.5, VOCs, CO₂, temperature, and humidity. Daily surveys captured self-reported PM2.5 readings and recent cannabis use, while baseline and end-of-study assessments evaluated IAQ perceptions, cSHS risk awareness, and in-home smoking behavior. Survey results were summarized via descriptive statistics, and linear mixed-effects models were used to characterize objective IAQ trends. Six additional adult household members provided parallel end-of-study data.
Results:
Reported engagement was high, with 85% (11/13) of participants indicating that they reviewed the monitor at least daily. The average number of days in the previous week that a caregiver reported a child being home while cannabis was smoked declined from 4.5 (SD 2.2) at the trial start to 2.8 (SD 2.9) at the end (6/13, 46% had a reduction; 1/13, 8% reported an increase). Furthermore, 62% (8/13) of participants reported that they reduced (4/13, 31%) or thought about changing (4/13, 31%) their smoking habits. Around 62% (8/13) of participants agreed or strongly agreed that IAQ monitoring helped drive conversations about changing indoor smoking rules, while 100% (13/13) reported no IAQ-driven disagreements among household residents regarding in-home smoking rules. A linear mixed-effects model did not indicate a consistent trend in PM2.5 levels across participants over time (β=-0.28; SE 1.13; P=.81), but there was heterogeneity in trends, and those with the largest reductions in PM2.5 over the trial had the largest reduction in reported children's cSHS exposure.
Conclusions:
In-home IAQ monitoring was feasible and perceived as useful among caregivers who smoked cannabis indoors. Real-time IAQ feedback supported risk awareness, promoted family dialogue, and coincided with reductions in in-home smoking around children. These findings suggest that IAQ feedback may represent a scalable tool for reducing children's cSHS exposure and merits further testing in larger, controlled trials.
