Australian smokers being shunned in their own homes: Study

An Australian study has found that smokers are increasingly being shunned even in their own homes.

The research by the NSW Government and the University of Sydney found that 91.9% of the state's population aged 16 and over live in households where smoking is not allowed indoors.

So less than 9% of people live in houses where smoking is allowed.

But 17% of people aged 16 and over are smokers, so the figures suggest many smokers are no longer allowed to smoke in their own homes.

This follows a 30-year trend that began in 1976 with the banning of smoking on buses and trains, and more recently with bans on smoking in bars, restaurants and in the workplace, the university says in a statement.

Dr Andrew Penman, CEO of the Cancer Council of NSW, has welcomed the findings, saying they show that smoking is becoming less socially acceptable.

"These latest findings suggest that even family members of smokers are insisting that smokers' homes are not their castles when it comes to smoking indoors in the privacy of the home," News.com.au quoted Dr Penman as saying in the statement.

The 91.9% figure for smoke-free households continues an uninterrupted trend since 1997, when fewer than 70% of households were smoke-free.