MedWire News: Young people are less likely to become full-time smokers if they live in towns that ban smoking in restaurants, results of a US study show.

Smoking is associated with a wide range of conditions and diseases, including chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, lung cancer and heart disease. Research has shown that people who start smoking in adolescence find it particularly difficult to kick the habit in later life.

Dr Michael Siegel, from Boston University School of Public Health in Massachusetts, and team interviewed 3834 adolescents, aged 12-17 years, about their experiences of smoking. Of these, 2791 were interviewed again 2 years later and 2217 were interviewed 4 years later.

In total, 9.3% of the participants became established smokers over the study period.

Analysis revealed that smoking bans in local restaurants were not associated with a reduced risk of smoking experimentation, but they were associated with a reduced risk of transition from experimentation to established smoking.

Indeed, teenagers who lived in towns with bans on smoking in restaurants were around 40% less likely to become full-time smokers than those who lived in towns that allowed smoking in such establishments.

The researchers note that smoking bans in restaurants may influence teenagers by reducing their exposure to smokers in public places and altering their view of the social acceptability of smoking.

Writing in the Archives of Pediatric and Adolescent Medicine, Dr Siegel and team conclude: "Local smoke-free restaurant laws, if they are strong enough (ie, complete smoking bans), may significantly lower youth smoking initiation by impeding the progression from cigarette experimentation to regular or established smoking."