Evidence map›Paper›PMID 41664133›Full record

ArticleBMC medicine2026

Patterns of disparity: age and socioeconomic differences in women's smoking and quitting outcomes in Great Britain.

Sarah E Jackson, Caitlin Notley, Sharon Cox

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in BMC medicine, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.

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1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

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2 · The registry

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3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

0 citing papers in PubMed.

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4 · The record

Corrections and comments

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5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

3 authors.

Sarah E JacksonDepartment of Behavioural Science and Health, University College London, 1-19 Torrington Place, London, WC1E 7HB, UK. s.e.jackson@ucl.ac.uk.
Caitlin NotleyFaculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Norwich Medical School, University of East Anglia, Norwich, UK.
Sharon CoxDepartment of Behavioural Science and Health, University College London, 1-19 Torrington Place, London, WC1E 7HB, UK.

Funding

Cancer Research UK PRCRPG-Nov21\100002
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundSmoking poses health risks to women across the lifespan. This study aimed to examine age-related differences in smoking, quit attempts, and cessation outcomes among women in Great Britain, overall and by socioeconomic position.

methodsWe analysed cross-sectional data from 30,519 women (≥ 16 years) in Great Britain participating in a nationally representative survey between 2023 and 2025. We used logistic regression with restricted cubic splines to obtain age-specific estimates of smoking prevalence, the quit attempt rate, the success rate of quit attempts, and the overall quit rate, among all women and by socioeconomic position (indexed by occupational social grade; ABC1 = more advantaged, C2DE = less advantaged). We calculated prevalence ratios (PR; C2DE/ABC1) to illustrate the extent of socioeconomic disparities.

resultsOverall, smoking prevalence was highest among women in their 20s and 30s and declined with age. However, there were notable differences by socioeconomic position. While it declined steadily with age among more advantaged women, smoking prevalence peaked in the early 40s among less advantaged women and was more than twice that of more advantaged women in mid-life (PR range = 2.02-2.47 between ages 35 and 60). Quit attempts decreased linearly with age, with similar prevalence and trends across socioeconomic groups. The success rate of quit attempts was highest among women in their 20s and 30s, but dropped in mid-life and further in older age. Women from less advantaged backgrounds had lower success rates, particularly between ages 45 and 60 (PR range = 0.70-0.73). The overall quit rate among past-year smokers was highest at age 31 for more advantaged women (23.3%) and at age 25 for less advantaged women (22.9%). Quit rates were substantially lower between ages 40 and 60 among less advantaged women (PR range = 0.65-0.69).

conclusionsSmoking behaviours and cessation outcomes among women in Great Britain vary by both age and socioeconomic position, with particularly high smoking prevalence and low quit rates among less advantaged women in mid-life, corresponding with perimenopause and the menopausal transition. These disparities highlight the need for tailored smoking cessation strategies to improve quit success and reduce smoking prevalence across the lifespan.

Indexed as

SmokingSmoking CessationAdolescentAdultAgedAge FactorsCross-Sectional StudiesFemaleHumansMiddle AgedPrevalenceSocioeconomic Disparities in HealthSocioeconomic FactorsUnited KingdomYoung AdultAgeGenderLife stageSexSmokingSmoking cessationWomen

Identifiers

PMID41664133
PMCPMC12888745

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.