IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/gam/jijerp/v22y2025i5p658-d1639778.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

In-Vehicle Tobacco Smoke Exposure: A Narrative Review of the Literature

Author

Listed:
  • Cara Harris

    (School of Nursing, The University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, AL 35294-1210, USA)

  • Karen Heaton

    (School of Nursing, The University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, AL 35294-1210, USA)

Abstract

(1) Background: This narrative review examines in-vehicle tobacco smoke exposure among private, occupational, and commercial drivers, focusing on prevalence, nicotine biomarkers, and health consequences. (2) Methods: A comprehensive search on the PubMed, Scopus, and Embase databases was used to identify peer-reviewed, full-text, and English articles published between 2014 and 2024. Search terms were related to motor vehicles, tobacco smoke exposure, and drivers. Articles were selected for inclusion based on their relevance to in-vehicle smoking and second- or third-hand smoke exposure attributable to tobacco cigarettes through article title, abstract, and full-text screening. (3) Results: This review highlights the dangers of in-vehicle second- or third-hand smoke exposure, evidenced by the 17 articles included. Significant second-hand smoke exposure and biomarkers were revealed mostly among adolescents and children. However, a gap exists in addressing tobacco smoke exposure among occupational/commercial drivers, specifically, long-haul truck drivers (LHTDs), who have heightened exposure due to their work environment—the truck cabin—which may increase their lung cancer risk. (4) Conclusions: There is a significant literature gap regarding in-vehicle tobacco smoke exposure in occupational/commercial drivers. Future research should include nicotine biomarker usage to quantify nicotine exposures and smoking cessation intervention development tailored to LHTDs.

Suggested Citation

  • Cara Harris & Karen Heaton, 2025. "In-Vehicle Tobacco Smoke Exposure: A Narrative Review of the Literature," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 22(5), pages 1-10, April.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jijerp:v:22:y:2025:i:5:p:658-:d:1639778
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/22/5/658/pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/22/5/658/
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Adam Hege & Michael K. Lemke & Yorghos Apostolopoulos & Brian Whitaker & Sevil Sönmez, 2019. "Work-Life Conflict among U.S. Long-Haul Truck Drivers: Influences of Work Organization, Perceived Job Stress, Sleep, and Organizational Support," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 16(6), pages 1-19, March.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Krasniuk, Sarah & Lemke, Michael K. & Hassoun, Aya & Hege, Adam & Crizzle, Alexander M., 2024. "Improving truck stop environments to support long-haul truck driver safety and health: A scoping review," Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice, Elsevier, vol. 185(C).
    2. Michael K. Lemke & Adam Hege & Alexander M. Crizzle, 2023. "An Agenda for Advancing Research and Prevention at the Nexus of Work Organization, Occupational Stress, and Mental Health and Well-Being," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 20(11), pages 1-12, May.
    3. Fernanda Lise & Mona Shattell & Raquel Pötter Garcia & Kethelyn Costa Rodrigues & Wilson Teixeira de Ávila & Flávia Lise Garcia & Eda Schwartz, 2024. "Long-Haul Truck Drivers’ Perceptions of Truck Stops and Rest Areas: Focusing on Health and Wellness," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 21(9), pages 1-13, September.
    4. Ka Po Wong & Alan Hoi Shou Chan, 2021. "Exploration of the Socioecological Determinants of Hong Kong Workers’ Work-Life Balance: A Grounded Theory Model," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(20), pages 1-15, October.
    5. M. Isabel Sánchez-Hernández & Óscar Rodrigo González-López & María Buenadicha-Mateos & Juan Luis Tato-Jiménez, 2019. "Work-Life Balance in Great Companies and Pending Issues for Engaging New Generations at Work," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 16(24), pages 1-18, December.
    6. Fernanda Lise & Mona Shattell & Raquel Pötter Garcia & Wilson Teixeira de Ávila & Flávia Lise Garcia & Eda Schwartz, 2024. "Health of Family Members of Road Transport Workers: Evaluation of Perceived Stress and Family Effectiveness," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 21(10), pages 1-15, October.
    7. Fernanda Lise & Mona Shattell & Flávia Lise Garcia & Laurel Kincl, 2024. "Risk Factors for Chronic Non-Communicable Diseases of Long-Haul Truck Drivers during the COVID-19 Pandemic: An Integrative Review," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 21(7), pages 1-15, July.
    8. Susan E. Peters & Harrison Grogan & Gesele M. Henderson & María Andrée López Gómez & Marta Martínez Maldonado & Iván Silva Sanhueza & Jack T. Dennerlein, 2021. "Working Conditions Influencing Drivers’ Safety and Well-Being in the Transportation Industry: “On Board” Program," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(19), pages 1-15, September.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:gam:jijerp:v:22:y:2025:i:5:p:658-:d:1639778. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: MDPI Indexing Manager (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.mdpi.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.