Abstract
This study examines the relationship between religion and tobacco use among university civil servants in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, that participated in waves 1 (1999, n = 4030) and 4 (2012-13, n = 2933) of the Pro-Saúde Study. We employed self-administered questionnaires and logistic regression models to estimate cross-sectional and longitudinal associations between the independent (religion) and dependent (smoking/non-smoking) variables adjusted for age, sex, race/color, marital status, religious attendance, and schooling. Our results show that Pentecostal evangelical respondents, for example, were less likely to smoke and initiate tobacco use between the two survey waves than those of Afro-Brazilian religions. This study contributes to understanding the relationship between religion and health by including longitudinal data on the transition to smoking and its stopping. It also indicates the importance of investigating the topic in relation to other health habits and conditions.
religion; tobacco use; Pro-Saúde Study; Rio de Janeiro; Brazil