Brief ReportMenthol Cigarette Smoking among Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Adults
Introduction
In 2009, certain characterizing flavors in cigarettes were prohibited in the U.S.; however, menthol-flavored cigarettes can still be legally manufactured and sold.1 Menthol is a mint-flavored additive with analgesic and cooling effects that can mask the harshness and taste of tobacco, making these products easier to use and increasing their appeal among youth and other vulnerable populations.2, 3, 4 Additionally, menthol has a synergistic effect with nicotine.5
The tobacco industry has targeted youth, women, and minorities with menthol cigarettes,2, 6 and studies indicate that these groups smoke menthol cigarettes at higher rates.2, 7, 8 Little is known about whether another vulnerable group, lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) individuals, smoke menthol at higher rates than their heterosexual/straight counterparts. The LGBT community is important to consider because LGBT individuals smoke at a higher rate than the general population,9, 10 and the tobacco industry has selectively targeted the LGBT community with tobacco product marketing.11, 12 The tobacco industry’s strategy to target the LGBT community was first uncovered through the discovery of internal industry documents pertaining to “Project Subculture Urban Marketing (SCUM).”12 The tobacco industry has continued to infiltrate LGBT communities by funding AIDS and LGBT organizations, and sponsoring LGBT pride parades, street fairs, and film festivals.13
During 2009–2010, current cigarette smoking was considerably higher among U.S. LGBT adults (32.8%) than the general adult population (19.5%).9 Although one study of U.S. adults aged 18–34 years found comparable odds of menthol cigarette smoking between LGBT and heterosexual respondents,14 the extent of menthol cigarette smoking among all U.S. LGBT adults is uncertain. To address this research gap, this study assessed current menthol cigarette smoking by sexual orientation among a nationally representative sample of adults using the 2009–2010 National Adult Tobacco Survey (NATS).
Section snippets
Sample
The 2009–2010 NATS is a stratified, national landline and cellular telephone survey of non-institutionalized adults aged ≥18 years residing in the 50 U.S. states and District of Columbia.9 The sample was designed to yield nationally representative data. Respondent selection varied by phone type. For landline numbers, one adult was randomly selected from each eligible household. For cellular numbers, adults were selected if a cellular phone was the only method they could be reached by telephone
Results
Among all respondents, current menthol cigarette smoking was higher among LGBT adults (9.7%) than heterosexual/straight adults (4.2%) (Table 1, p<0.05). Among current cigarette smokers, menthol cigarette smoking was higher among LGBT smokers (36.3%) than heterosexual/straight (29.3%) smokers. This difference was particularly notable among women (LGBT=42.9%, heterosexual/straight=32.4%, p<0.05); Hispanics (LGBT=57.6%, heterosexual/straight=36.0%, p<0.05); individuals of non-Hispanic other races
Discussion
The findings from this study reveal that LGBT smokers have higher odds of using menthol cigarettes than heterosexual/straight smokers, which is consistent with previous evidence showing that the tobacco industry has selectively marketed tobacco products to LGBT individuals.11, 12 Younger people, women, and racial/ethnic minorities also have higher prevalence of menthol cigarette smoking, which is consistent with previous surveys.15 For example, during 2004–2008, 44.8% of U.S. current cigarette
Acknowledgments
The findings and conclusions in this report are those of the authors and do not necessarily represent the official position of CDC.
No financial disclosures were reported by the authors of this paper.
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2022, Addictive BehaviorsCitation Excerpt :That is, they may have been smoking for fewer years. Consistent with prior research, the current study revealed that sexual minority females were more likely to be current smokers (Hoffman, Delahanty, Johnson, & Zhao, 2018; Schuler & Collins, 2020) and to report past 30-day menthol cigarette use (Fallin, Goodin, & King, 2015; Ganz & Delnevo, 2021; Johnson et al., 2016), compared to heterosexual females. Importantly, these findings remained significant even when controlling for covariates that are commonly associated with menthol smoking such as race and ethnicity (Cohn, Johnson, Hair, Rath, & Villanti, 2016; Delnevo, Ganz, & Goodwin, 2020a; Weinberger et al., 2019).
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2020, Drug and Alcohol DependenceCitation Excerpt :One such possibility is aggressive marketing from the tobacco industry. In the early 1990s, the tobacco industry began marketing to sexual minorities and spent significant resources in advertising, bar promotion, giveaways, and sponsoring events (Tobacco use in LGBT communities, 2017; Fallin et al., 2015a; American Lung Association, 2019). The literature also points to an increased level of stress as another potential reason for elevated tobacco use (Meyer, 2003).