TY - JOUR
T1 - Secondhand smoke exposures in indoor public places in seven Asian countries
AU - Lee, Jiyeon
AU - Lim, Soogil
AU - Lee, Kiyoung
AU - Guo, Xinbiao
AU - Kamath, Ramachandra
AU - Yamato, Hiroshi
AU - Abas, Adinegara L.
AU - Nandasena, Sumal
AU - Nafees, Asaad A.
AU - Sathiakumar, Nalini
N1 - Funding Information:
The component of the study conducted in Sri Lanka, Pakistan, India and Malaysia was supported by the University of Alabama at Birmingham International Training and Research in Environmental and Occupational Health program, Grant No. 5 D43 TW05750 , from the National Institute of Health–Fogarty International Center (NIH–FIC). The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and do not necessarily represent the official views of the NIH–FIC.
PY - 2010/9
Y1 - 2010/9
N2 - Exposure to secondhand smoke (SHS) is a major threat to public health. Asian countries having the highest smoking prevalence are seriously affected by SHS. The objective of the study was to measure SHS levels in hospitality venues in seven Asian countries and to compare the SHS exposure to the levels in Western countries. The study was carried out in four types of related hospitality venues (restaurant, café, bar/club and entertainment) in China, India, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, Pakistan and Sri Lanka. Real-time measurement of particulate matter of <2.5μm aerodynamic diameter (PM2.5) was made during business hour using a handheld laser operated monitor. A total of 168 venues were measured in seven countries. The average indoor PM2.5 level was 137μg/m3, ranging from 46μg/m3 in Malaysia to 207μg/m3 in India. Bar/club had the highest PM2.5 level of 191μg/m3 and restaurants had the lowest PM2.5 level of 92μg/m3. The average indoor PM2.5 level in smoking venues was 156μg/m3, which was 3.6 times higher than non-smoking venues (43μg/m3). Indoor PM2.5 levels were significantly associated with country, type of venue, smoking density and air exchange rate (p<0.05). In the seven Asian countries, PM2.5 levels were high due to SHS in public places. The current levels are comparable to the levels in Western countries before the adoption of smoke-free policy. Since Asian country has high prevalence of SHS in public places, there is an urgent need for comprehensive smoke-free regulation in Asian countries.
AB - Exposure to secondhand smoke (SHS) is a major threat to public health. Asian countries having the highest smoking prevalence are seriously affected by SHS. The objective of the study was to measure SHS levels in hospitality venues in seven Asian countries and to compare the SHS exposure to the levels in Western countries. The study was carried out in four types of related hospitality venues (restaurant, café, bar/club and entertainment) in China, India, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, Pakistan and Sri Lanka. Real-time measurement of particulate matter of <2.5μm aerodynamic diameter (PM2.5) was made during business hour using a handheld laser operated monitor. A total of 168 venues were measured in seven countries. The average indoor PM2.5 level was 137μg/m3, ranging from 46μg/m3 in Malaysia to 207μg/m3 in India. Bar/club had the highest PM2.5 level of 191μg/m3 and restaurants had the lowest PM2.5 level of 92μg/m3. The average indoor PM2.5 level in smoking venues was 156μg/m3, which was 3.6 times higher than non-smoking venues (43μg/m3). Indoor PM2.5 levels were significantly associated with country, type of venue, smoking density and air exchange rate (p<0.05). In the seven Asian countries, PM2.5 levels were high due to SHS in public places. The current levels are comparable to the levels in Western countries before the adoption of smoke-free policy. Since Asian country has high prevalence of SHS in public places, there is an urgent need for comprehensive smoke-free regulation in Asian countries.
KW - Asian countries
KW - Indoor
KW - Public places
KW - Secondhand smoke (SHS)
KW - Smoke-free policy
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=77955266666&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1016/j.ijheh.2010.05.007
DO - 10.1016/j.ijheh.2010.05.007
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:77955266666
SN - 1438-4639
VL - 213
SP - 348
EP - 351
JO - International Journal of Hygiene and Environmental Health
JF - International Journal of Hygiene and Environmental Health
IS - 5
ER -
