Experimentation with cigarettes began at an early age, with more than half (54%) of the respondents starting between the ages of 7 and 12 years. Among respondents in the Dominican Republic, 5% had ever been a regular smoker, which is similar to Ecuador (4%) and lower than other countries (10.4%�C53.0%). Among sellekchem those who reported ever having experimented with cigarettes, 38% had transitioned into ever regular smokers, compared with Uruguay which had the highest rate of 68% and Ecuador which had the lowest rate at 7%. In the Dominican Republic, 3% of women reported being current smokers, which is more similar to Ecuador (0.8%) and Guatemala (0.8%) and lower than other countries (6.1%�C18.3%). When respondents in the Dominican Republic were asked if they would try smoking next year, 7% responded yes, maybe, or don��t know.

Acceptability of cigarette use for women was 3% for the Dominican Republic, compared with 5% in Ecuador, 12% in Guatemala, 19% in Brazil, 33% in Uruguay, and 35% in Argentina. Table 2. Cigarette Use Behaviors of Pregnant Women Secondhand Smoke Exposure Self-reported SHS in the home and for both pregnant women and their young children are presented in Table 3. Smoking allowed in homes was 76% in the Dominican Republic, which was considerably higher relative to the other Latin American countries. Self-reported exposure to secondhand smoke ranged from 13% in Guatemala and Ecuador to 55% in Argentina with the Dominican Republic at 16%. SHS of the respondents�� young children was reported at 14% in the Dominican Republic, which is similar to Argentina (14%) and Uruguay (18%; range 5.

2%�C20.9%). Table 3. Secondhand Smoke Exposure Reported by Pregnant Women for Themselves and Their Young Children Bivariate analyses yielded two significant variables. Higher rates of exposure to secondhand smoke were reported by women who allowed smoking in their home compared with those who Batimastat did not allow smoking in their home, ��2(1) = 5.40, p < .05, though 71% (n = 94) of women who stated they were not exposed to secondhand smoke (n = 131) allowed smoking in their household. Belief that exposure to secondhand smoke could cause general illness was higher among respondents who reported being exposed to secondhand smoke compared with those who reported not being exposed to secondhand smoke, ��2(1) = 3.78, p < .05. The multivariate analyses did not yield any statistically significant variables that could characterize differences between these groups. Knowledge About Risks of Tobacco Use and Benefits of Quitting Comparison data were not available for this domain.