Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2009 Feb;11(2):126-33.
doi: 10.1093/ntr/ntp015. Epub 2009 Mar 5.

Symptoms of cough and shortness of breath among occasional young adult smokers

Lawrence C An  1 , Carla J Berg, Colleen M Klatt, Cheryl L Perry, Janet L Thomas, Xianghua Luo, Edward Ehlinger, Jasjit S Ahluwalia
Affiliations

Symptoms of cough and shortness of breath among occasional young adult smokers

Lawrence C An et al. Nicotine Tob Res. 2009 Feb.

Abstract

Introduction: The perception of negative health consequences is a common motive for quitting smoking, but specific information on the immediate health effects of occasional smoking among young adults is limited.

Method: To examine the relationship between cigarette use and symptoms of (a) cough or sore throat and (b) shortness of breath or fatigue after regular activities among young adults, we performed online health screening of a random sample of 25,000 college undergraduates. The screening survey assessed demographic characteristics, smoking and related health behaviors, and respiratory symptoms in the previous 30 days.

Results: The response rate was 26% (6,492/25,000). Among individuals reporting no smoking in the prior 30 days and smoking on 1-4, 5-10, 11-20, or 21-30 days, the prevalence of one or more days of cough/sore throat increased from 62.5% to 68.3%, 72.0%, 71.4%, and 73.7%, respectively (p < .001). Similarly, the prevalence of shortness of breath/fatigue increased from 42.7% to 47.1%, 56.2%, 59.5%, and 64.6%, respectively (p < .001). After controlling for demographics, other important health behaviors (e.g., days consuming alcohol and getting adequate sleep), and environmental tobacco smoke (ETS) exposure, reporting symptoms of cough/sore throat was associated with smoking on at least 21 days, whereas shortness of breath/fatigue was associated with smoking on 5 or more days. Among those reporting symptoms, increased number of days with respiratory symptoms was associated with smoking on most days as well as ETS exposure.

Discussion: In conclusion, this cross-sectional study found that occasional smoking and ETS exposure were associated with an increase in the rate of respiratory symptoms (cough/sore throat and shortness of breath/fatigue) among young adults.

PubMed Disclaimer

Figures

Figure 1.
Figure 1.
Percent reporting physical symptoms by number of days smoked. Relationship between number of days smoking and percent reporting any cough/sore throat or shortness of breath/feeling tired after regular activities in the past 30 days.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Addington WW, Carpenter RL, McCoy JF, Duncan KA, Mogg K. The association of cigarette smoking with respiratory symptoms and pulmonary function in a group of high school students. Journal of the Oklahoma State Medical Association. 1970;63:525–529. - PubMed
    1. Ajzen I, Fishbein M. Understanding attitudes and predicting social behavior. Eaglewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall; 1980.
    1. An LC, Hennrikus DJ, Perry CL, Lein EB, Klatt C, Farley DM, et al. Feasibility of Internet health screening to recruit college students to an online smoking cessation intervention. Nicotine & Tobacco Research. 2007;9(Suppl. 1):S11–S18. - PubMed
    1. An LC, Perry CL, Lein EB, Klatt C, Farley DM, Bliss RL, et al. Strategies for increasing adherence to an online smoking cessation intervention for college students. Nicotine & Tobacco Research. 2006;8(Suppl. 1):S7–S12. - PubMed
    1. Arcavi L, Benowitz NL. Cigarette smoking and infection. Archives of Internal Medicine. 2004;164:2206–2216. - PubMed

Publication types

Substances