Smoking intensity and urinary nicotine metabolites by socioeconomic status in the Heinz Nixdorf Recall study

BACKGROUND: Smoking intensity, which is generally based on self-reported average cigarettes per day (CPD), is a major behavioural risk factor and strongly related to socioeconomic status (SES). To assess the validity of the CPD measure, correlations with objective markers of tobacco smoke exposure – such as urinary nicotine metabolites – were examined. Yet, it remains unclear, whether this correlation is affected by SES, which may indicate imprecise or biased self-reports of smoking intensity. METHODS: We investigated the role of SES in the association between CPD and nicotine metabolites in current smokers among the participants of the population-based, prospective Heinz Nixdorf Recall Study. We determined urinary cotinine and additionally trans-3′-hydroxy-cotinine. SES was assessed by the International Socio-Economic Index of occupational status, and education. We calculated correlations (Pearson’s r) between logarithmised CPD and cotinine in subgroups of SES and analysed SES and further predictors of cotinine in multiple linear regression models separately by gender. RESULTS: Median reported smoking intensity was 20 CPD in male and 19 CPD in female smokers. Men showed higher cotinine concentrations (median 3652 μg/L, interquartile range (IQR) 2279–5422 μg/L) than women (3127 μg/L, IQR 1692–4920 μg/L). Logarithmised CPD correlated moderately with cotinine in both, men and women (Pearson’s r 0.4), but correlations were weaker in smokers with lower SES: Pearson’s r for low, intermediate, and high occupational SES was 0.35, 0.39, and 0.48 in men, and 0.28, 0.43, and 0.47 in women, respectively. Logarithmised CPD and urinary creatinine were main predictors of cotinine in multiple regression models, whereas SES showed a weak negative association in women. Results were similar for trans-3′-hydroxy-cotinine. CONCLUSIONS: Decreasing precision of self-reported CPD was indicated for low SES in men and women. We found no strong evidence for biased self-reports of smoking intensity by SES. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s12889-022-12609-y.