 |
|
 |
 |
 |
Smoking Bans Could Prevent
Tens of Thousands
of Heart Attacks Every Year
New Institute of Medicine Report Finds Even Brief
Exposure to Secondhand Smoke
Can Trigger a Heart Attack
Tobacco smoke can cause health problems not only for smokers, but also
for people around them. Breathing secondhand smoke increases a person's risk for a
heart attack and other heart conditions.1
Learn More About the Relationship Between
Secondhand
Smoke and Heart Disease
NEW! Institute of Medicine Report:
Secondhand Smoke and
Cardiovascular Effects: Making Sense of the Evidence*
The science is
consistent, according to the Institute of Medicine (IOM). In the new report, Secondhand Smoke Exposure and Cardiovascular Effects: Making Sense of the Evidence,
the IOM draws clear links between secondhand smoke and heart disease and
heart attacks.2 After an extensive review of scientific studies, the
report documents the effects of secondhand smoke, including the
following:
- Secondhand smoke can cause a heart attack.
- It is possible that even brief exposure to secondhand smoke could trigger a heart attack.
- Smoke-free air laws result in fewer heart attacks.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Office on Smoking and
Health, asked the Institute of Medicine to bring together an expert
committee to review the current science on the relationship between
secondhand smoke exposure, both long and short-term, and heart attacks.
Visit the
CDC Office on Smoking and Health
Web site for more
detailed information about the IOM Report on Secondhand Smoke
Exposure and Cardiovascular Effects including:
- Analysis of the report findings
- Animation of how secondhand smoke affects the cardiovascular system
- CDC statement on report findings
|
CDC Secondhand Smoke Buttons
Become an advocate for health by posting one of the buttons featured
below to your Web site, blog, or social networking profile.
More Information
References
- U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. The Health Consequences of Involuntary Exposure to Tobacco Smoke: A Report of the Surgeon General. Atlanta, Georgia: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Coordinating Center for Health Promotion, National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion, Office on Smoking and Health; 2006.
- Institute of Medicine. Secondhand Smoke Exposure and Cardiovascular Effects: Making Sense of
the Evidence. Washington, D.C.: National Academies Press; 2009.
*Links to non–Federal organizations are provided solely as a service to our users. Links do not constitute an endorsement of any organization by CDC or the Federal Government, and none should be inferred. The CDC is not responsible for the content of the individual organization Web pages found at this link.
Page last reviewed: October 15, 2009
Page last modified: October 15, 2009
Content source: Division for Heart Disease and Stroke
Prevention,
National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and
Health Promotion |
 |