A new "meta-analysis" of data from 14 studies involving 6,166 individuals with
coronary heart disease (CHD) finds that passive smoking was associated with an
overall 23 percent increase in the risk of CHD among men and women who had never
smoked. Ill effects of exposure to smoke was greater at home than at work, say Tulane researchers who estimate that 35,000 to 40,000 non-smokers' deaths each
year in the United States can be attributed to passive smoking. "Our data
underscore the need to eliminate passive smoking as an important strategy to
reduce the societal burden of CHD," the scientists say. Jiang He, Tulane
University School of Public Health, New Orleans: (504) 588-5165.
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