The prevalence of smoking and its relationship to other coronary risk factors in a rural white community.

A cross-sectional study of tobacco-smoking habits and its relationship to other coronary risk factors in a large rural community of 7,188 white subjects aged 15-64 years, revealed that 48.1% of the men and 17.9% of the women were currently smoking; only 28.6% men and 74.1% women had never smoked. Heavy smoking prevailed, with a mean daily consumption of 21.4 g and 14.6 g tobacco among male and female smokers respectively. Only 16.5% of male and 27.7% of female smokers smoked less than 10 g tobacco per day. Smoking was associated with a high total cholesterol level, a low high-density lipoprotein cholesterol level, low blood pressure, a low body mass index, coronary-prone type A behaviour, and a high prevalence of coronary heart disease in men. Furthermore, smoking was associated with a high alcohol consumption and a low level of education and occupational class. These findings emphasise the high prevalence of smoking in whites and its harmful association with coronary heart disease, and indicate the need for effective anti-smoking programmes.