%0 Journal Article %A K B Weaver %A S I Woodruff %A T L Conway %A C C Edwards %A S H Zhu %A J P Elder %T Does the US Navy attract young women who smoke? %D 1998 %R 10.1136/oem.55.11.792 %J Occupational and Environmental Medicine %P 792-794 %V 55 %N 11 %X OBJECTIVE: To assess whether the United States Navy is disproportionately attracting and recruiting female smokers from the civilian sector. METHODS: Standardised comparisons of cigarette use among Navy women recruits and civilian women were conducted with data from a 1996-97 Department of Defense study and the 1994 National Health Interview Survey. RESULTS: Young Navy women recruits (18-22 years) had significantly higher rates of current and heavy smoking than their civilian counterparts after adjusting for differences in sociodemographic characteristics. Smoking rates among older recruits and civilian women (23-30 years) were not significantly different. CONCLUSIONS: It seems that the Navy attracts young civilian women who already smoke, many of whom smoke heavily. %U https://oem.bmj.com/content/oemed/55/11/792.full.pdf