Smoke-free homes give family members an effective means of exerting social pressure on smokers living with them and a powerful tool for changing the smokers' behavior, according to new research by scientists at the Cancer Prevention and Control Program of the University of California at San Diego.

Smoking restrictions plus family pressure on the smoker to quit were highly associated with quit attempts and expressed intention to quit in the future, the scientists found in their survey of almost 9,000 California households.

"Family pressure is a key element in inducing a spouse or other family member to quit," says John P. Pierce, PhD, one of the researchers of the study. "Feeling that your family wants you not to smoke may be one of the major reasons for a smoker to agree to a smoke-free home."

Complete home smoking bans were strongly related to lower cigarette consumption and the ability to wait at least 30 minutes after awakening to light up the first cigarette of the day.

A smoke-free home also appeared to lengthen the duration of smoking cessation attempts, the scientists report in the current issue of Nicotine and Tobacco Research.

Smokers were almost six times as likely to report smoke-free homes if they lived with a non-smoking adult and child, than when there was no child or adult non-smoker in the household, the scientists found. Male smokers were more likely than women to report smoke-free homes.

Researchers received funding support from the California Department of Health Services, the National Cancer Institute and the American Heart Association.