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
. 2024 Oct 17;ahead-of-print(ahead-of-print):450-465.
doi: 10.1108/IJOPH-10-2023-0064.

Recent evidence on rates and factors influencing smoking behaviours after release from smoke-free prisons: a scoping review

Ashley Brown  1 , Clair Woods-Brown  1 , Kathryn Angus  1 , Nicola McMeekin  2 , Kate Hunt  1 , Evangelia Demou  3
Affiliations

Recent evidence on rates and factors influencing smoking behaviours after release from smoke-free prisons: a scoping review

Ashley Brown et al. Int J Prison Health (2024). .

Abstract

Purpose: Smoke-free prison policies have been introduced in some countries, in part to address very high levels of tobacco use in people in prison. However, relapse rates post-release remain high. This papers aims to improve understanding of post-release smoking and/or vaping behaviour is necessary to inform support for a priority population.

Design/methodology/approach: The authors searched health, social science and criminal justice databases for studies about smoking/vaping behaviours among people released from smoke-free prisons. Studies were included if they reported primary data and were published between January 2017 and March 2024 in English; the population was adults/young people (16 yr+) imprisoned or formerly imprisoned, in prisons with comprehensive smoke-free policies; and at least one of the following was reported: pre-release intention to smoke, vape or remain abstinent post-release; smoking/vaping behaviour post-release and factors influencing smoking/vaping behaviour; attempts to quit again following post-release smoking/vaping relapse.

Findings: Nine studies met our criteria. The evidence base is small and mainly from the USA or Australia. Evidence continues to suggest that most people resume smoking after leaving a smoke-free prison. No new interventions have been successful in reducing relapse rates. No studies report on vaping post-release, although two studies report on perceived factors affecting smoking relapse post-release from prisons allowing vaping.

Research limitations/implications: Given very high rates of relapse, there remains a significant need to better understand what approaches are feasible and acceptable for reducing return to smoking post-release.

Originality/value: This review updates the limited evidence on smoking behaviours after leaving a smoke-free prison.

Keywords: Cessation interventions; Inequalities; Marginalised populations; Prison; Smoke-free policy; Smoking; Vaping.

PubMed Disclaimer

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
PRISMA flow diagram of identification of studies
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Albany, H., Richmond, R., Simpson, M., Kariminia, A., Hwang, Y.I.J. and Butler, T. (2020), “Smoking beyond prison bans: the impact of prison tobacco bans on smoking among prison entrants”, Journal of Correctional Health Care, Vol. 27 No. 4, pp. 280-288. - PubMed
    1. ASH (2018), “Briefing: the implementation of smokefree prisons in England and Wales information and resource briefings”, ASH (Action of Smoking and Health).
    1. Binswanger, I.A., Carson, E.A., Krueger, P.M., Mueller, S.R., Steiner, J.F. and Sabol, W.J. (2014), “Prison tobacco control policies and deaths from smoking in United States prisons: population based retrospective analysis”, BMJ, Vol. 349, p. g4542. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Borschmann, R., Borschmann, R., Keen, C., Spittal, M.J., Preen, D., Pirkis, J., Larney, S., Rosen, D.L., Møller, L., O'moore, E., Young, J.T., Altice, F.L., Andrews, J.R., Binswanger, I.A., Bukten, A., Butler, T., Chang, Z., Chen, C.-Y., Clausen, T., Christensen, P.B., Culbert, G.J., Cunningham, R., Degenhardt, L., Dolan, K., Fazel, S., Fischbacher, C., Giles, M., Graham, L., Huang, Y.-F., Huber, F., Karaminia, A., King, P., Kouyoumdjian, F.G., Lim, S., Liu, Y.E., Lopez, D., Moniruzzaman, A., Morenoff, J., Pizzicato, L.N., Proescholdbell, S.K., Ranapurwala, S.I., Shaw, J., Slaunwhite, A., Somers, J.M., Spaulding, A.C., Stavseth, M.R., Stern, M.F., Telfer, K., Viner, K., Wang, N., Zhao, B., Zhu, N., Kinner, S.A. and Kinner, S.A. (2024), “Rates and causes of death after release from incarceration among 1 471 526 people in eight high-income and Middle-income countries: an individual participant data meta-analysis”, Lancet (London, England), Vol. 403 No. 10438. - PubMed
    1. Brown, A., Mitchell, D. and Hunt, K. (2022), “Post-implementation perspectives on smokefree prison policy: a qualitative study with staff and people in custody”, European Journal of Public Health, Vol. 32 No. 1, pp. 112-118. - PMC - PubMed

Publication types