Philly Housing Authority's smoking ban cut secondhand exposure by half
People who live in Philadelphia Housing Authority apartments — many of them children and elderly with asthma and other lung conditions — are taking in a lot less secondhand smoke these days, researchers are reporting.
Exposure to others' cigarette smoke, connected with a long list of health woes, is about half what it was before the housing authority went smoke-free 18 months ago, according to a study that comes as smaller housing agencies prepare their own tobacco bans.
No-smoking rules have expanded rapidly in recent decades, in public places including airplanes and airports, schools, government buildings, and restaurants. As public distaste grew along with evidence of harm from secondhand smoke, the indoor bans morphed into smoke-free policies that included outdoor campuses and parks.
Yet places where people are exposed the most — and could benefit most from smoking bans — often changed last.
Read more: http://www.philly.com/philly/health/Phila-Housing-Authoritys-ban-cut-second-hand-smoke-exposure-by-half-study-finds.html