Studies Show Ways to Cut Student Smoking

Colleges can reduce smoking among students, which increased dramatically during the 1990s, by making dormitories smoke-free and launching more smoking cessation programs, two new studies show.

College students who live in smoke-free dorms are 40% less likely to take up smoking than those who live in unrestricted housing, according to a study released last week by the Harvard School of Public Health.

A second study by the school found that although 81% of colleges prohibit smoking in public areas, only 27% forbid smoking in the dorms.

In fact, researchers noted, colleges don’t offer enough smoke-free dorms to meet demand. About 44% of college students live in smoke-free dorms but another 29% would like to do so. Nor do colleges offer enough cessation programs to help students who want to quit.