Second Hand Smoke At
Work Linked to Lung Damage
Excerpt By Ray Dunne, Reuters Health Writer

LONDON (Reuters Health) - People exposed to cigarette smoke in the workplace are at risk of serious lung damage, according to research published Thursday in the journal Occupational and Environmental Medicine.

A study by doctors in Scotland has found that the lung function of nonsmokers can be reduced by as much as 10% if they are exposed to secondhand smoke at work. They also report that the damage done in the workplace outweighs that associated with passive smoking at home or in public places.

Dr. R. Chen and colleagues from the University of Dundee studied the effects of passive smoking on 300 men and women between the ages of 25 and 64. They found that those exposed to the highest levels of smoke at work were three times more likely to show reduced lung function in tests, compared with people not exposed to smoke on the job.

And secondhand smoke at work was far more strongly linked to poorer performance on lung function tests than either exposure at home or public places.

According to the investigators, their findings provide a strong case for prohibiting smoking in the workplace altogether.

``Passive smoking has been a public concern for a while, because it is a major indoor pollutant to which a substantial segment of the population is exposed,'' Chen and colleagues write.

``Our findings suggest that, as well as its effects on the smoker, smoking at work may contribute to deterioration of lung function in nonsmoking workmates, further evidence for its control,'' the authors add.

``These findings endorse current policies of strictly limiting smoking in shared areas, particularly working environments,'' the team concludes.

Clive Bates, director of the anti-smoking group ASH, urged the UK government to take action.

``The government committed to improve conditions for nonsmokers at work in its 1998 tobacco policy but hasn't managed to do anything but argue, delay and fudge,'' Bates said in a statement. ``Meanwhile people are getting sick and employers risking legal action.''

He added, ``There's no justification for nonsmokers suffering damage to their ability to breathe while they are at work. People have a basic right to work in a healthy environment and that means they shouldn't have to work in a room full of smoke.''

According to ASH, as many as 3 million people in the UK are continuously or frequently exposed to cigarette smoke at work.

This study, Bates noted, ``adds to the large volume of evidence showing that secondhand smoke exposure also causes cancer, heart disease, stroke and a variety of non-fatal illnesses--as well as being an irritant and distraction.''

SOURCE: Occupational and Environmental Medicine 2001;58:563-568.

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