Feb. 12, 2006
 
HEALTH: More Hispanics Smoking, Studies Find
 
By Lisa Hoffman
Scripps Howard News Service
 
More Hispanic women and teenagers are smoking, according to a growing body of research.
 
After reviewing 11 studies involving 27,000 Hispanics in America, researchers at the University of California found that more Latino women smoke the longer they have been in the United States.
 
The study, unveiled in July, showed that smoking among some Hispanic women doubled after they moved to the United States.
 
Other surveys have found that Latino teenagers also are smoking more. The 2004 National Health Interview Survey, conducted by the federal National Center for Health Statistics, determined that nearly 21 percent of Hispanic high-school students smoked. That was higher than the approximately 20 percent who did in 2002.
 
Overall, Hispanics in America smoke less than other racial or ethnic groups. A 2004 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention report found that about 17 percent of Hispanics smoke. In contrast, American Indians have the highest rate, at nearly 41 percent; followed by non-Hispanic whites, with about 23 percent; non-Hispanic blacks, with 22 percent, and Asians with 13 percent. Some Hispanic-rights advocates contend that the low rate of smoking by Latinos has served as a beacon to tobacco companies looking for new customers.
 
Katherine Culliton, a lawyer with the nonprofit National Latino Council of Alcohol and Tobacco Prevention, in Washington, accuses the tobacco industry of deliberately targeting Latinos in its advertising and other ways. Popular telenovelas -- prime-time soap operas -- often feature characters who smoke, which sends the message that to do so is glamorous or attractive. She also said that more smoking-related billboards and in-store ads can be found in Latino neighborhoods, and that Spanish-language magazines often feature cigarette ads.
 
"They're bombarded with ads," Culliton said. Tobacco companies "are trying to get away with things they don't do in" advertising to white customers. Philip Morris USA, one of the largest cigarette companies, denied the accusations. Company spokeswoman Jennifer Gooisch noted that a landmark legal settlement in 1998 prohibits much of the marketing Culliton alleges is occurring.
 
Even though tobacco firms are allowed to advertise in magazines, Philip Morris does not do so, nor has it placed its products in any movies or television shows since 1990, she said.
 
"In many cases our marketing standards go beyond what the settlement agreement requires," Gooisch said.
 
Philip Morris also crafted a month-long national television public-service campaign in Spanish to encourage smoking prevention and to urge parents to talk to their kids about the health hazards of the habit.