Here’s another reason to keep kids away from places where tobacco smokers light up. Children who breathe in cigarette smoke risk getting aspirin-exacerbated respiratory disease (AERD), according to a new study published in the journal Annals of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology and reported by Medical News Today.
AERD is a condition characterized by chronic sinus and nasal problems and asthma triggered by taking aspirin and most other nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs).
For the study, researchers asked 260 asthma and AERD patients and their spouses—a total of 520 people—to fill out surveys that included questions about their exposure to second-hand smoke as children.
Scientists found that compared with their spouses who didn’t have AERD, patients with the condition were more than three times as likely to have experienced exposure to second-hand tobacco smoke as kids. What’s more, AERD patients were also five times as likely to have been exposed to second-hand cigarette smoke as children and adults.
In addition, findings showed that smokers had a one-and-a-half time higher risk of AERD compared with those who never smoked.
“Second-hand smoke exposure during childhood has been linked to a variety of diseases, including heart disease and cancer, and this study shows it also is associated with aspirin-exacerbated respiratory disease,” said Jinny Chang, MD, a member of the American College of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology, and lead study author.
According to researchers, the primary importance of these findings is that there is no safe amount of second-hand smoke for anyone to breathe in.
The scientists said what smokers need to do is think about the serious health problems lighting up can cause their kids and others before puffing away.
Are you a smoker who wants to quit? Click here for one woman’s story about how she kicked her smoking habit.
Cigarette Smoke More Likely to Cause Aspirin-Related Breathing Problems for Kids as Adults
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