Half measures ‘don’t protect children from passive smoking’
New research has found that actions like opening windows and waving away smoke do nothing to protect children from the effects of passive smoking.
Researchers at the University of Warwick found that less than a fifth of parents in smoking households ban smoking in the home . In households where some or no measures are taken, researchers said there is no positive effect on exposure to environmental tobacco smoke.
The study, published in the British Medical Journal, involved interviewing parents from 314 households who smoked and had young children. Researchers asked parents about measures taken to protect children and then measured levels of cotinine, a by-product of nicotine, in the urine of the children.
The levels of cotinine were found to be the same in children who lived in unrestricted smoking households and those who lived in households that took smaller measures such as opening windows or using air fresheners. The only significant difference was recorded when smoking was banned altogether.
The researchers also found that over 80% of parents believed that environmental tobacco smoke is harmful and 90% believed that infants can be protected from it in the home.
