Karachi: A study involving researchers from the Aga Khan University’s Department of Community Health Sciences and Medicine has revealed the presence of second-hand smoke (SHS) in an alarming 95% of children in Pakistan and Bangladesh.
SHS occurs when people around an active smoker inhale exhaled tobacco fumes from the smoker. This highlights the deeply worrying ripple effect of smoking that can permeate various social spaces, particularly in places with poor smoking restrictions.
SHS exposure levels in Dhaka and Karachi, the two study sites, suggest widespread and unrestricted smoking, according to the researchers. The findings, published in the Nicotine and Tobacco Research Journal, provide evidence of extremely high levels of exposure to SHS in Karachi, Pakistan, where almost all (99.4%) children have been exposed to SHS, most of which is perpetuated through a male-dominated smoking culture.
To measure exposure, they tested their saliva to see if it contained cotinine. They investigated the association between the smoking behavior of adult residents and household visitors and the salivary cotinine levels of children in both cities. Compared to children living with nonsmokers, children living with adult smokers had higher levels of SHS exposure. Similarly, children living in homes that allowed indoor smoking had slightly higher levels of SHS exposure than those in homes where smoking was not allowed.
Dr Romaina Iqbal and Professor Javaid Khan from the Aga Khan University in Pakistan pointed out that “The high exposure of children to SHS contrasts with data from many developed countries where only a minority of children are now exposed to such risks.”
The effects of second-hand smoke have long been observed and analyzed by scientists around the world, and they are nothing short of horrific. It has been shown to add to various respiratory infections in newborns, infants and children up to the teenage years. In addition, research suggests that babies born with hereditary disorders are less likely to survive when exposed to secondhand smoke and may lead to an increased frequency of sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS). “These research findings are really alarming. If we fail to protect children from exposure to SHS, they will develop an increased risk of respiratory infections and related deaths, and will be at risk of lower academic achievement and high rates of smoking later in life,” said Professor Rumana Huque of the ARK Foundation. , Bangladesh and co-author of the paper.
However, in addition to these initiatives, it is also important to promote the ban on smoking in public places and in transport, especially in those public spaces that children often visit, such as playgrounds, parks and fairgrounds. In these circumstances, it is essential to complement smoking cessation with advice and support in the field of tobacco cessation,” said Professor Kamran Siddiqi from the University of York.
The research team called for a comprehensive approach to protecting children from this harm, reducing smoking in homes and enforcing smoking bans in public places.
