Smoking Bans to Thank for 10 Percent Fall in Preterm Birth Rates

Smoking during pregnancy can lead to a wide-range of problems, including premature birth, low-birth-weight and even stillbirth, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Further complications also include cleft palate, asthma, and increased risk of mental disorders. Infants one to 12 months old exposed to second-hand may also be at an increased risk of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS), the leading cause of death among infants in this age group.  

However, researchers from the University of Edinburgh, Maastricht University, Hasselt University, Harvard Medical School and Brigham and Women's Hospital discovered that smoking bans in public places have a positive health effect, particularly for maternal and child health. These findings were based on information from 11 studies and screenings involving 2.5 million children with 250,000 asthma related issues, which showed that premature births and hospital visits for asthma decreased by 10 percent after the implementation of smoking bans.

Unfortunately, only 16 percent of the world's population is protected by laws that ban smoking in public areas. As second-hand smoke exposure affects around 40 percent of children worldwide, it has been proven that bans on such habits in public areas-including parks, restaurants, bars, and work places, has an effective protective measure against various smoking-related illnesses.

"This research has demonstrated the very considerable potential that smoke-free legislation offers to reduce preterm births and childhood asthma attacks. The many countries that are yet to enforce smoke-free legislation should in the light of these findings reconsider their positions on this important health policy question," said senior author and a physician-researcher at Brigham and Women's Hospital, Professor of Primary Care Research and Development at The University of Edinburgh and visiting professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School, Aziz Sheikh, via a press release.

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More information regarding the findings can be seen via the journal The Lancet.