Skip to main content

Table 1 Knowledge and Beliefs About FDA Regulation and Its Consequences (n = 678)

From: Smokers' reactions to FDA regulation of tobacco products: Findings from the 2009 ITC United States survey

 

% Yes

% No

% Don't Know

"In 2009, the President signed a law that gave the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) power to regulate tobacco products. Have you heard of this law before?"

28*

(24%-31%)

71

(68%-75%)

1

(1%-2%)

"If the government regulated tobacco products, would it suggest to you that they are more harmful than you think?"

43**

(39%-47%)

52

(48%-56%)

5

(4%-7%)

"Has the government put rules in place designed to make cigarettes less harmful?"

25

(22%-28%)

61

(57%-65%)

14

(11%-17%)

"Do you think that such rules could make smoking less harmful?"

26***

(23%-30%)

65

(61%-68%)

9

(7%-11%)

"Do you think that tobacco companies disclose everything they know about cigarettes to the government?"

19

(16%-22%)

76

(73%-80%)

5

(3%-6%)

"Do you think your current brand of cigarettes has been evaluated by the government?"

43****

(39%-47%)

31

(27%-34%)

26

(23%-30%)

"Do you think the government could remove your brand of cigarettes from the market because of safety concerns?"

49

(45%-53%)

38

(34%-42%)

13

(10%-16%)

"Do you think that tobacco companies ARE NOW REQUIRED to disclose everything they know about cigarettes to the FDA?"

47

(43%-50%)

39

(36%-43%)

14

(11%-16%)

"Do you think that tobacco companies are sincere in their efforts to improve the health of their customers by providing them with information to help them quit?"

30

(27%-34%)

65

(61%-69%)

5

(3%-6%)

  1. 95% Confidence Intervals are presented in parentheses
  2. * = compared to those with lower education, participants with higher education were more likely to report awareness of the law (p = .016)
  3. ** = compared to those with higher education, participants with lower education (p < .001) and lower income (p = .007) were more likely to report that if government regulated tobacco products, it would suggest that the products are more harmful
  4. *** = compared to females, male participants were more likely to think rules designed to make cigarettes less harmful could make smoking less harmful (p = .032)
  5. **** = compared to females, younger participants (18-24), and those with higher education, male participants (p = .008), older participants (p = .030), and participants with lower education (p = .039) were more likely to report a belief that their current brand of cigarettes has been evaluated by the government
Back to article page

BMC Public Health

ISSN: 1471-2458

Contact us