Secondhand Smoke Exposure and Depressive Symptoms among Korean Adolescents: JS High School Study

Abstract

IntroductionIncreasing evidence suggests that secondhand smoke exposure (SHSE) may affect not only physical health, but also mental health. Therefore, we evaluated the association between SHSE and depressive symptoms among Korean adolescents.MethodsThe JS High School Study enrolled 1071 high school freshmen from a rural community of South Korea. The current analysis was limited to 989 adolescents (495 male and 494 female adolescents), after excluding 48 ever-smokers, 3 students with physician-diagnosed depression, and 31 students who did not complete the depression questionnaire. SHSE was assessed using a self-reported questionnaire and was classified into three groups: none, occasional exposure, and regular exposure. Depressive symptoms were assessed according to the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI) score, ranging from 0 to 63, and the presence of depressive symptoms was defined as a BDI score ≥10.ResultsOverall, adolescents with SHSE were more likely to have depressive symptoms than those without SHSE (p = 0.042).In a sex-specific analysis treating the BDI score as a continuous variable, regular SHSE was independently associated with higher BDI scores in male adolescents (β = 2.25, p = 0.026), but not in female adolescents (β = 1.11, p = 0.253). Compared to no SHSE, the odds ratio for having depressive symptoms among male adolescents with regular SHSE was 2.17 (95% confidence interval, 1.11 to 4.25) after adjusting for age, body mass index, and study year, and 3.65 (95% confidence interval, 1.52 to 8.73) after adjusting for age, body mass index, study year, exercise, and household income.ConclusionRegular exposure to secondhand smoke was associated with having depressive symptoms among Korean male adolescents.

Association between secondhand smoke exposure and quality of life in pregnant women and postpartum women and the consequences on the newborns

“…This finding is not surprising because depressive disorder is increasingly the leading cause of the burden of disease as measured by disability-adjusted life years worldwide [46]. Although we did not find the association between postpartum depression and exposure to SHS during pregnancy, previous studies reported the linkage between SHS and depression in the general population [47] and in specific populations such as adolescents [48] and PPW [49]. …”

Secondhand Smoking Is Associated with Poor Mental Health in Korean Adolescents

“…In addition, it is possible that high metabolic rate of nicotine and different instrumentation of mental health assessment might lead to different results. Kim et al (2016) have conducted a self-report questionnaire survey of high school students about exposure to secondhand smoke and depression. They reported that the OR for having depressive symptoms among male adolescents with regular secondhand smoke exposure was 3.65 (95% CI: 1.52-8.73) compared with students who did not have experience of secondhand smoking, similar to results of this study.…”

“…Previous studies have focused on the association between secondhand smoking and only depression in some groups in Korean adolescents (Lee 2014;Kim et al 2016). The objective of this study was to determine whether exposure to secondhand smoke is associated with mental health related variables, such as depression, stress, and suicide, in Korean adolescents using national data.…”

Secondhand Smoking and Depressive Symptoms Among In-School Adolescents

“…In particular, future studies should take place of SHS exposure into account, as a study including Korean adolescents showed that the SHS−depressive symptom relationship was significant when SHS exposure occurred at home but not at school. 30 Relatedly, the question on SHS was based on the number of days people smoked in the presence of the student. Given that the level of exposure within a day can vary widely between students, it may not accurately reflect the level of SHS exposure.…”