Smoking Behavior and Cigarette Expenditure in a Household: Evidence for Smoke‑Free Houses Initiation in Indonesia

The household is considered as a private area that is untouched tobacco control policies in developing countries, especially in Indonesia, which has not ratified the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC) treaty.

This study aims to identify smoking behavior and expenditure on cigarettes in the household, which are part of the initiation of a policy including a smoke‑free home, so it assumes that the home is a public domain in Tegal Regency, Central Java Province, Indonesia.

This research is an observational study with a quantitative descriptive design. A total of 225 subjects in the seven regions designated as smoke‑free areas were all selected as samples in this study and were willing to be the subject of research.

The results found that 76.1% of smokers smoked with their nuclear family (wife/children/husband) present. Smoking behavior with the nuclear family inside the home (39.13%) and outside the home (36.96%) was more common than not smoking with the nuclear family. Expenditure for cigarettes per month was one‑third of household revenue (IDR 607,521.74) based on the regency minimum wage (UMR) set by the local government.

The study concludes that smokers who smoke with family still lack knowledge on smoking’s impact on health and household economics. The smoke‑free regulation that is initiated should include households as a parameter.