In a recent article about smoke-free bars and pool halls, a bar patron stated the following about smoking in bars: “That’s the whole persona of a bar.” But people probably used to say similar things about the persona of malls and airplanes. If you asked them today, they’d probably say crowds and bad food – not smoking.

Smoke-free policies play a major role in changing this “persona,” as well as attitudes and behaviors regarding smoking, in the end helping to reduce smoking rates. They do this by correcting the misperception that smoking is normal adult behavior – in Maine, and nationwide, over 75 percent of adults do not smoke. Smoke-free policies also reduce social support for smoking and help smokers who are ready to quit.

When smoking is permitted in bars, it becomes a social activity. In a recent study, 70 percent of smokers who frequently patronized social venues said that they smoke more in these settings. In Androscoggin County, 94 percent of adults who smoke want to quit. On average, smokers make five to seven quit attempts before they are able to stay quit for good, and smokers who return to smoking cite the presence of other smokers as a common reason for lapsing.

Taking all of this into consideration, successful tobacco control programs, like we have here in Maine, include the adoption of policies that restrict smoking in workplaces and public places.

Wendy Tardif, Auburn

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