OBJECTIVES To evaluate serum hyaluronate concentrations relative to air pollution, environmental tobacco smoke (ETS), and respiratory health in Japanese school children. METHODS Respiratory symptoms and serum IgE concentrations were examined in 1037 school children living in four communities in Japan with differing levels of air pollution. Serum hyaluronate concentrations were assayed in 230 ...

This study assessed the pattern of exposure to tobacco smoke pollution (TSP; also known as, secondhand smoke) in Bangladeshi households with children and examined the variations in household smoking restrictions and perception of risk for children's exposure to TSP by socioeconomic status. We interviewed 1,947 respondents from Bangladeshi households with children from the first wave (2009) of t...

Studies of the effects of environmental exposures on domestic and wild animals can corroborate or inform epidemiologic studies in humans. Animals may be sensitive indicators of environmental hazards and provide an early warning system for public health intervention, as exemplified by the iconic canary in the coal mine. This article illustrates the application of animal sentinel research to eluc...

BACKGROUND Environmental tobacco smoke (ETS) is a recognised air pollutant. Its harmful effects have been found to be implicated in health disorders, including unfavourable pregnancy outcomes. The discrepancy between self-reported environmental tobacco smoke exposure and cotinine levels in pregnant non-smokers in France was examined. METHOD Plasma cotinine was determined by a CPG-SM method on...

OBJECTIVE To determine the extent of secondhand smoke exposure in China, and to explore the potential associated factors. METHODS This study was a nationally representative household survey examining secondhand smoke exposure of non-institutionalized men and women aged 15 and older using a global standardized geographically clustered sample design. A total of 13,354 people completed the indiv...

Environmental tobacco smoke (ETS) is a major contributor to indoor air pollution. Since decades it is well documented that ETS can be harmful to human health and causes premature death and disease. In comparison to the huge research on toxicological substances of ETS, less attention was paid on the concentration of indoor ETS-dependent particulate matter (PM). Especially, investigation that foc...

Kanagawa Prefecture became the first subnational government in Japan to implement an ordinance for the prevention of exposure to secondhand-smoke in public facilities. The ordinance aims to protect people from the negative health impacts of secondhand smoke; however, it has wide exemptions especially for hospitality and leisure business establishments. In addition, designated smoking areas are ...

BACKGROUND The UK government proposed introducing partial smokefree legislation for England with exemptions for pubs and bars that do not prepare and serve food. We set out to test the hypothesis that pubs from more deprived areas and non food-serving pubs have higher levels of particulate air pollution. METHODS We conducted a cross sectional study in four mainly urban areas of the North West...

background: passive or environmental smoking is one of the important health problems, to which many adults and children are exposed in involuntary status. methods: in this hospital based case-control study, household exposure to tobacco smoke as an estimate of passive smokers was conducted in hamadan, western iran. the purpose was to find the relationship between environmental smoking and incid...