A new paper on nicotine and tobacco research published by Oxford University Press found that a new paper banning smoking in public housing in the United States in 2018 has resulted in reduced hospitalization for cardiovascular problems.
Tobacco use and exposure to second-hand smoke are the leading causes of preventable death in the United States. Because of tobacco, about 480,000 Americans die each year. Although the prevalence of adults exposed to second-hand smoke dropped sharply between 1988 and 2014 (from 87.5% to 25.2%), in the United States, about 58 million non-smokers have tobacco smoke smoke. Since the early 2000s, state and local governments have begun to ban smoking in public places. Research shows that smoke-free legislation on workplaces, bars/restaurants and other spaces is associated with hospital admissions for systolic blood pressure and cardiovascular problems.
In July 2018, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development issued a rule prohibiting smoking in all buildings. More than 2 million people live in public housing in the United States. The City Housing Administration, which has more than 400,000 residents, is the country’s largest public housing organization.
The researchers here examined the impact of smoke-free policy on hospitalization outcomes for hospitalization and stroke by comparing hospitalization trends among New York City’s public housing residents with the New York City-matched parenting population. The study included only adults over the age of 50, because the risk of heart disease increased significantly as adults entered their 50s.
The survey found a modest decline in heart attack rates (from 1.7% to 1.1% of residents). It also found a slight drop in strokes (from 1.9% to 1.3%). Hospitalization rates for heart attacks and strokes were trending downward 54 months after the smoking ban.
“Housing remains a key environment for interventions aimed at reducing adverse health events that may be associated with second-hand smoke,” said Elle Anastasiou Pesante, lead author of the paper. “These results are promising and moving forward with a desire to understand the long-term impact of smoke-free policies on cardiovascular and other chronic diseases, especially among older people living in public housing settings.”
The paper “evaluates assessment and health outcomes for adults over 50 years of age and over 2015-2022 for adults in public housing in New York City” (Midnight, April 8)
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