Passive/Second hand smoking: A neglected health hazard
SunilMunakomi, Assistant Professor, Kathmandu Universitysunilmunakomi@gmail.com
Submitted September 19, 2017
The article by Epstein et al. highlighted upon the importance of smoking cessation. [1] However, a major aspect that is often neglected is the health hazards of passive smoking. [2] Many studies have addressed the casual relationship between environmental tobacco smoke, passive smoking, and second hand smoking and the risk of strokes increasing by 10-30% even with only an hour per week of exposure to passive smoking. [3-4] Simple cessation of smoking can, therefore, give a pseudo belief of minimizing this risk if there is an exposure to passive smoking. It is prudent to implement strict heath regulation acts in addressing this neglected health hazard especially in public areas. This could be a stepping stone in our quest to conquer this global health issue.
1. Epstein KA, Viscoli CM, Spence JD, et al. Smoking cessation and outcome after ischemic stroke or TIA. Neurology Epub 2017 Sep 8.
2. Hou L, Han W, Jiang J, et al. Passive smoking and stroke in men and women: a national population-based case-control study in China. Sci Rep 2017;7:45542.
3. Bonita R, Duncan J, Truelsen T, Jackson RT, Beaglehole R. Passive smoking as well as active smoking increases the risk of acute stroke.Toba Control 1999;8:156-160.
4. Malek AM, Cushman M, Lackland DT, Howard G, McClure LA. Secondhand Smoke Exposure and Stroke: The Reasons for Geographic and Racial Differences in Stroke (REGARDS) Study. Am J Prev Med 2015;49:e89-e97.
For disclosures, please contact the editorial office at journal@neurology.org.
The article by Epstein et al. highlighted upon the importance of smoking cessation. [1] However, a major aspect that is often neglected is the health hazards of passive smoking. [2] Many studies have addressed the casual relationship between environmental tobacco smoke, passive smoking, and second hand smoking and the risk of strokes increasing by 10-30% even with only an hour per week of exposure to passive smoking. [3-4] Simple cessation of smoking can, therefore, give a pseudo belief of minimizing this risk if there is an exposure to passive smoking. It is prudent to implement strict heath regulation acts in addressing this neglected health hazard especially in public areas. This could be a stepping stone in our quest to conquer this global health issue.
1. Epstein KA, Viscoli CM, Spence JD, et al. Smoking cessation and outcome after ischemic stroke or TIA. Neurology Epub 2017 Sep 8.
2. Hou L, Han W, Jiang J, et al. Passive smoking and stroke in men and women: a national population-based case-control study in China. Sci Rep 2017;7:45542.
3. Bonita R, Duncan J, Truelsen T, Jackson RT, Beaglehole R. Passive smoking as well as active smoking increases the risk of acute stroke.Toba Control 1999;8:156-160.
4. Malek AM, Cushman M, Lackland DT, Howard G, McClure LA. Secondhand Smoke Exposure and Stroke: The Reasons for Geographic and Racial Differences in Stroke (REGARDS) Study. Am J Prev Med 2015;49:e89-e97.
For disclosures, please contact the editorial office at journal@neurology.org.