Prevalence and risk of smoking behaviors following parental separation: a systematic review.
Children whose parents separate face roughly 1.5 to 2.8 times higher likelihood of starting smoking and developing nicotine dependence compared to children from intact families. Smoking rates among separated households ranged from 28.5–52%, versus 14.2–29.1% in intact families, with early separation, poverty, and parental smoking history amplifying risk.
Relevance to India: The review specifically examined Indian cohorts and found that parental marital disruption strongly predicts early tobacco use in India, including bidis and smokeless forms.