A recent cross-sectional study shows alarming results on exposure to tobacco smoke in cars in Spain and the United Kingdom. Environmental tobacco smoke is highly harmful to the health of non-smokers, especially when they are in closed vehicles, according to research coordinated by the Barcelona Public Health Agency (ASPB) with the participation of the Red Biomedical Research Center ( CIBER) and published in the journal Environmental Research.
Environmental tobacco smoke is what a person exhales when they smoke and is inhaled by nearby people who are not smoking. The health risks for those exposed to secondhand smoke in cars are much greater than in other indoor areas, although exposure periods are typically short. The results of the research, carried out within the framework of the TackSHS project and led by Mª José López, principal researcher in the area of Epidemiology and Public Health of the CIBER (CIBERESP) and the ASPB, show that there is a clear danger for the health of non-smokers, especially for children, when smoking is allowed inside the vehicle.
The study, carried out between April 2017 and August 2018, recruited a sample of drivers in Spain and the United Kingdom and is the first investigation in Europe to monitor exposure to environmental and residual tobacco smoke in private vehicles of smokers and non-smokers. smokers.
Of the 45 cars analyzed, “air nicotine concentrations,” an indicator of exposure to tobacco smoke, were found to be worryingly high in vehicles owned by smokers. In addition, high concentrations of residual tobacco smoke compounds were also discovered, a more recent term that refers to the residue and toxic particles left on the surfaces of cars and dust, after the tobacco smoke has been removed. dissipated.
The study found that concentrations of all residual smoke compounds in cars where drivers reported smoking inside were up to six times higher than in non-smoking cars. For its part, the scientific community confirms that non-smokers who are exposed to tobacco smoke on a daily basis have up to a 20% higher risk of lung cancer and a 25% higher risk of heart attack.
It is necessary to protect minors who travel with smokers
Regarding the methodology used in the research, among the 30 participants in Spain, exposure to residual tobacco smoke (THS) was measured in a subsample of 20 vehicles (4 owned by non-smokers, 8 owned by smokers who do not smoke inside the car and 8 smokers who smoke inside the car).
Ambient nicotine was measured using monitors hung from the roof of the vehicle during trips. In addition, dust samples were taken from the front seats, rear seats, floor mats, carpets, gear shift area and dashboard using a conventional vacuum cleaner.
After the travel sampling period, participants completed a form with sociodemographic information, smoking patterns, and other characteristics of car trips.
Airborne nicotine samples taken during 24-hour measurements yielded median concentrations below the limit of quantitation in non-smoking cars (n = 20), 0.23 μg/m3, in non-smoking cars. (n = 15), and 3.53 μg/m3 in the cars of smokers who smoke indoors (n = 10).
Furthermore, airborne nicotine samples measured only during driving yielded notably higher median concentrations in cars of smokers who smoke indoors (21.44 μg/m3) than in cars of smokers who do not smoke indoors. interior, and in non-smoking rooms. Finally, no significant differences were found by country.
Exposure to secondhand smoke in cars is four times higher than in other indoor areas, such as in smoking homes
According to Dr. López: “the toxic compounds released by deposited nicotine, such as tobacco-specific nitrosamines (TSNAs), pose a long-term carcinogenic risk to those who are exposed.” However, despite growing evidence of the dangers associated with exposure to environmental and residual tobacco smoke in private vehicles, regulation in Spain is clearly insufficient.
Unlike other countries, where there is regulation that prohibits smoking in cars in the presence of minors, in Spain there is no national law that prohibits smoking in private vehicles.
Xavier Continente, first author of the study and researcher at the ASPB and CIBERESP, points out that “the study shows the need for greater public awareness about the risks of tobacco smoke in vehicles, and we also want to highlight the importance of implementing effective regulatory measures. to protect the health of non-smokers, especially minors.”
The research has also had the collaboration of Noelia Ramírez, researcher from a group of the CIBER area of Diabetes and Associated Metabolic Diseases (CIBERDEM), from the research group of Esteve Fernández, from the CIBER area of Respiratory Diseases (CIBERES), from the Institute Catalan Institute of Oncology and the Bellvitge Biomedical Research Institute (IDIBELL). Fernández is the coordinator of the European TackSHS project, under whose framework this study is carried out.
Source: CIBER and ASPB
