Secondhand smoke exposure and sleep disturbances among Korean adolescents: A nationally representative cross-sectional study

Q: What is the study investigating about Korean adolescents?

The study investigates the association between secondhand smoke (SHS) exposure and adolescents’ sleep duration in South Korea.

Q: How was sleep duration measured?

Sleep duration (hours/minutes) was analyzed using self-reported data from the Korea Youth Risk Behavior Web-based Survey (KYRBS).

Q: What did the results show about SHS exposure and sleep?

Greater SHS exposure days were significantly associated with shorter sleep duration on a weekly, weekday, and weekend basis after full adjustment.

Q: Does tobacco use change the SHS–sleep relationship?

Yes. The study found that tobacco use significantly moderated the relationship between SHS exposure and sleep duration, with interaction terms showing effects across sleep models.

Sep 28, 2026

Uploaded by McGucket

This study examines the relationship between secondhand smoke (SHS) exposure and sleep duration in Korean adolescents using a pooled cross-sectional design and nationally representative Korea Youth Risk Behavior Web-based Survey data from 2021 to 2024 (n=195,664). Ordinary least squares regression assessed associations between SHS exposure days and sleep duration while adjusting for individual, school, and family-level covariates. SHS exposure showed a significant negative association with weekly, weekday, and weekend sleep duration, and tobacco use moderated the relationship.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryHealthcare

FormatPDF

Pages15

Reading Time38 min

AccessFree to download

Abstract

Introduction

Methods

Results

Conclusions

Tobacco Induced Diseases Research Paper Secondhand smoke exposure and sleep disturbances among Korean adolescents: A nationally representative crosssectional study Fengrui Hua 1, Yunyun Wu 1, Shengyuan Xu2, Wenbin Du 1, Yunyun Xu3 ABSTRACT INTRODUCTION Inadequate sleep duration among adolescents is increasingly recognized as a significant public health concern, with potential associations with various environmental exposures. This study investigates the association between secondhand smoke (SHS) exposure and sleep duration in Korean adolescents. METHODS This study employed a pooled cross-sectional design using data from the nationally representative Korea Youth Risk Behavior Web-based Survey from 2021 to 2024 (n=195664) . This study analyzed self-reported sleep duration (hours/ minutes) from the Korea Youth Risk Behavior Web-based Survey (KYRBS) . Ordinary least squares regression models were used to analyze the association between SHS exposure days and sleep duration, adjusting for individual, school, and family-level control variables. The moderating effect of tobacco use was examined through interaction terms. RESULTS SHS exposure demonstrated a significant negative association with adolescent sleep duration. After full adjustment for control variables, each additional day of SHS exposure was associated with a reduction in weekly average sleep duration (β= -0.027; 95% CI: -0.029 – -0.024, p<0.01), weekday sleep duration (β= -0.030; 95% CI: -0.03 – -0.028, p<0.01), and weekend sleep duration (β= -0.018; 95% CI: -0.023 – -0.013, p<0.01). Tobacco use significantly moderated this relationship, with the interaction term showing positive coefficients across all sleep duration models. CONCLUSIONS SHS exposure significantly associated with sleep deprivation among Korean adolescents, with this association being influenced by individual tobacco use habits. Tob. Induc. Dis. 2025;23(December):200 [https://doi.org/10.18332/tid/213717](https://doi.org/10.18332/tid/213717) INTRODUCTION Adolescence represents a significant phase in an individual’s physical and mental maturation, with sufficient sleep playing a crucial role in cognitive function, emotional well-being, academic achievement, and long-term physical health 1,2 . The World Health Organization and national health authorities stress that adolescents require 9–10 hours of sleep per day3. Despite this recommendation, there is a growing global concern regarding sleep insufficiency among teenagers. For instance, average sleep duration is around 8 hours in Europe4, 7.3 hours in the United States5, 6.3 hours in Japan6, and 5–6 hours in Korea7. Secondhand smoke (SHS), also referred to as passive or involuntary smoking, entails non- AFFILIATION 1 Research Institute of Social Development, Southwestern University of Finance and Economics, Chengdu, China 2 Graduate School of Information Sciences, Tohoku University, Sendai, Japan 3 School of Social and Behavioral Sciences, Nanjing University, Nanjing, China CORRESPONDENCE TO Yunyun Xu. School of Social and Behavioral Sciences, Nanjing University, Nanjing 210046, Jiangsu, China E-mail: dg21070019@smail. [nju.edu.cn](nju.edu.cn) KEYWORDS secondhand smoke exposure, sleep disturbances, adolescents, South Korea Received: 5 October 2025 Revised: 24 October 2025 Accepted: 28 October 2025 Published by European Publishing. © 2025 Hua F. et al. This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. ([https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/)) Tobacco Induced Diseases Research Paper smokers inhaling smoke either exhaled by smokers or from burning tobacco against their volition8. SHS exposure poses a significant health challenge during adolescence9,10 . While numerous studies have established the adverse impact of active smoking on sleep 11,12, there remains a dearth of research on the i

FAQs

What is the study investigating about Korean adolescents?

The study investigates the association between secondhand smoke (SHS) exposure and adolescents’ sleep duration in South Korea.

How was sleep duration measured?

Sleep duration (hours/minutes) was analyzed using self-reported data from the Korea Youth Risk Behavior Web-based Survey (KYRBS).

What did the results show about SHS exposure and sleep?

Greater SHS exposure days were significantly associated with shorter sleep duration on a weekly, weekday, and weekend basis after full adjustment.

Does tobacco use change the SHS–sleep relationship?

Yes. The study found that tobacco use significantly moderated the relationship between SHS exposure and sleep duration, with interaction terms showing effects across sleep models.

Sep 28, 2026

Uploaded by McGucket