Second Hand Smoke

Research

Study confirms smoke-free laws reduce heart attacks
A study released at the American Heart Association’s Scientific Sessions conference found that heart attack rates in Pueblo, Colorado, declined by nearly 30% after the city implemented a comprehensive smoke-free workplace law, including restaurants and bars, in July 2003. The new study is consistent with findings of an earlier study that found the number of heart attacks declined by 40% in Helena, Montana, during the six months that the city’s smoke-free law was in effect in 2002. Click to read the rest of the press release by the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids.

Sidestream smoke contains more toxins than mainstream smoke
An article in the December 2005 issue of Tobacco Control shows that inhaled fresh sidestream cigarette smoke is approximately four times more toxic per gram total particulate matter than mainstream cigarette smoke. Click to view the abstract.

Secondhand smoke an acute impact on cardiovascular system
A recent study in the European Heart Journal found that exposure to secondhand smoke can negatively affect both atherothrombosis and acute coronary syndromes. Click to view the abstract.

Passive smoking exposure risk factor for early breast cancer
A meta-analysis published in the November issue of the International Journal of Cancer indicates that passive smoking raises the risk of breast cancer, especially premenopausal risk, to a similar degree as active smoking. Long-term regular exposure to passive smoking was associated with an overall 27% increased risk of breast cancer among women who had never smoked. Click for more information on the study.

Exposure to secondhand smoke doubles cancer risk
A study by researchers at the M. D. Anderson Cancer Center has found that second-hand smoke exposure doubles the risk of lung cancer in persons who have never smoked. The study examined self-reported second-hand smoke exposure among lung cancer patients compared to healthy matched controls. The study, published in the October 10th issue of the International Journal of Cancer, is consistent with earlier epidemiological studies which have linked second-hand smoke exposure to lung cancer. Click for more information.

Short exposure to secondhand smoke hardens arteries
According to Japanese researchers who presented at a recent American Heart Association meeting, as little as 30 minutes of exposure to secondhand smoke can cause the arteries of nonsmokers to harden. Click for more information.

Research indicates pets affected by secondhand smoke
In conjunction with Mayor Bloomberg’s anti-smoking campaign, New York City’s Department of Health has warned that secondhand smoke not only affects people. Based on recent research studies, cats and dogs who belong to smokers have higher cancer rates than pets of non-smokers. Click for more information.

Genes affect risk of respiratory illness in children exposed to secondhand smoke
Researchers from the University of Southern California have found that children with a certain genetic makeup are at higher risk of developing respiratory illnesses as a result of secondhand smoke exposure. Children with the key gene who live with a smoker are four times more likely to miss school due to such illnesses. The study appears in the December 15th issue of the American Journal of Respiratory Critical Care Medicine. Click for more information.

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Michigan:
Covert air monitoring in Michigan by health groups
The Campaign for Smokefree Air, a coalition of health groups in Michigan, have been monitoring the air quality in restaurants and bars across the state with a purse-size air quality monitor. The group plans to use the information to prove that bartenders and waiters are being exposed to unhealthy levels of air pollution. Unhealthy levels have been found in 31 unidentified establishments in Ann Arbor, Novi, and Lansing. Click for more information. (Requires entry of zip code and year of birth).

New Jersey:
Workplace air in New Jersey found to be unfit
In a monitoring study conducted by the Roswell Park Cancer Institute and commissioned by the American Cancer Society and the New Jersey Group Against Smoking Pollution (GASP), individuals who work in smoke-filled establishments in New Jersey inhale 3.4 times more pollution than what federal regulators consider permissible. The level of indoor air pollution in smoke-free restaurants was 84% lower than in bowling alleys, 87% lower than in casinos, 88% lower than in restaurants that allow smoking, and 96% lower than in bars. Click to view the report.

Rhode Island:
Indoor air pollution decreases after passage of smoke-free law in Rhode Island
A study conducted by the Harvard School of Public Health for the Rhode Island Department of Health found that the number of respirable suspended particles in local establishments has decreased by 96% since the statewide smoke-free law went into effect on March 1, 2005. Click to view a press release and the report.

Wyoming:
Smoking ban improves air quality in Laramie, WY
A study funded the Substance Abuse Division of the Wyoming Department of Health examined air quality in two Wyoming cities, one without a smoking ban and one with a ban. Researchers found that the air quality in restaurants and bars in Cheyenne, where smoking is allowed, was 20 times worse than in Laramie, where smoking is banned in public buildings. The study also found that particulate pollution decreased by 96% after the implementation of Laramie’s ban. Click for more information.

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Westin becomes first smoke-free major hotel chain
As of January, Westin Hotels and Resorts will no longer allow smoking in any rooms, restaurants, bars or public areas at its 77 United States, Canadian, and Caribbean properties. The chain’s research found that 92% of its guests request a non-smoking room. In preparation for the new rule, the hotel’s smoking rooms will undergo extensive cleaning. Click for more information or to view a statement by the American Legacy Foundation and Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids.

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Georgia:
Northeast Georgia Medical Center goes smoke-free
The Northeast Georgia Medical Center health system is going tobacco-free as of January 1st. System hospitals are holding cessation classes and are selling nicotine replacement gum in the gift shop to help promote cessation efforts. Click for more information.

New York:
Sixteen Albany-area hospitals to become smoke-free
Sixteen hospitals in the Albany, NY area have joined together in an effort to go smoke-free by 2007. The initiative was announced during the Great American Smokeout on November 17th, and may be the first time in the U.S. that a coalition of hospitals will be implementing smoke-free grounds policies without a legal mandate to do so. Click for more information.

North Carolina:
Rowan Regional Medical Center in NC goes tobacco-free
Coinciding with the Great American Smokeout on November 17th, Rowan Regional Medical Center and five additional hospitals in North Carolina became tobacco-free. The hospitals have banned the use of tobacco within the buildings for many years, but the ban now extends to the entire hospital property. Click for more information.

Texas:
Texas Medical Center to go smoke-free
The 800-acre campus of the Texas Medical Center will be smoke-free effective May 1st. Click for more information.

West Virginia:
West Virginia’s Ohio Valley Medical Center enacts smoking ban
Effective January 1st, Ohio Valley Medical Center in West Virginia will ban tobacco on its campuses. The ban includes all buildings, grounds and vehicles leased, owned or managed by the hospital and will involve a focus on helping employees and area residents quit. Click for more information.

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Indiana:
Indiana bans outdoor smoking on government campus
Starting January 1st, state employees in Indiana will no longer be able to smoke anywhere on the Indiana Government Center Campus in Indianapolis. Click for more information.

Missouri:
Correctional facilities in Missouri to become smoke free
Beginning January 1st, all correctional facilities in the state of Missouri will become a smoke free zone. Click for more information.

South Dakota:
South Dakota government facilities go smoke-free
Beginning in May 2006, all state government campuses in South Dakota will go smoke-free in order to join the state’s three largest hospitals in the effort to reduce smoking. Click for more information.

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Iowa:
Boise State University considering campus smoking ban
The Faculty Senate at Boise State University is considering instituting a smoking ban in order to support the institution’s healthy campus initiative. The current policy bans smoking in all university-owned or leased buildings, facilities or areas occupied by state employees, but not in residence halls. A study conducted at the school found that 86% of students, 92% of faculty and 87% of staff agreed that universities should provide a smoke-free environment for students. Click for more information.

Kentucky:
Northern Kentucky University to go smoke-free in residence halls
Stating a need for fire safety, Northern Kentucky University officials have decided that the school's on-campus residence halls will become smoke-free next fall. Click for more information.

Maryland:
Mid-year ban implemented at Goucher College
A ban on smoking in all buildings and on selling tobacco products on campus was implemented at Goucher College in Maryland in order to coincide with the Great American Smokeout. As can be seen in this editorial, some students were incensed about the mid-year change. Other students worried about being able to keep their work-study job at the campus store due to decreased profits from the ban on the sale of tobacco products. (Registration required).

Minnesota:
St. Cloud State University closes last indoor smoking facility
Due to student demand, the only indoor smoking facility on the campus of St. Cloud State University in Minnesota has closed. Click for more information.

New York:
NYU bans smoking in dorms
Following 18 months of deliberation, NYU has decided to ban smoking in its dormitories as of next fall. The decision will apply to all 24 of NYU's residence halls. Click for more information.

Pennsylvania:
Lehigh University campaigns for smoke-free campus
The Great American Smokeout promotion on the campus of Lehigh University provided a backdrop for the university’s effort to ban smoking on the entire campus. One of Lehigh’s peer education clubs, called The Fresh Airs, has created a proposal to make Lehigh a smoke-free campus, including outside areas such as walkways and parking lots. The proposal also includes a statement to “prohibit the university from holding stock in or accepting donations from the tobacco industry.” Click for more information.

Wisconsin:
University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee waits for smoking ban to take effect
The Chancellor of the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee has yet to sign a resolution to ban smoking in the student union on campus. The Physical Environment Committee (PEC) on campus has sent a letter to the Chancellor asking for the smoking ban in all campus buildings. Click for more information.

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Nebraska:
List of smoke-free eateries in Nebraska available
Over 1,800 restaurants in Nebraska are smoke-free, employing over 31,000 individuals. Nebraska’s Group to Alleviate Smoking Pollution (GASP) has created a smoke-free dining guide to assist people in finding one of these restaurants. Click to access the guide.

Ohio:
Smoke free guide published for Ohio county
The Muskingham Valley Tobacco Free Coalition along with the Zanesville-Muskingum County Health Department has published a smoke free guide for diners seeking a smoke free restaurant. This guide is an example of communities across the country providing information on healthier environments for dining. Click for more information.

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