Despite the anti-smoking laws passed in 28 European countries, the proportion of employees exposed to cigarettes is increasing. Except in bars and restaurants.
More than one in four Europeans would have been exposed to passive smoking in their workplace in 2014, while a large number of European Union countries prohibit smoking in places of collective use. A proportion which would have increased by nearly 4% since 2009, worries a study presented at the congress of the European Respiratory Society organized in Milan (Italy).
Researchers from Imperial College London (United Kingdom) relied on the monitoring of 55,000 people across 28 European countries in 2009 and 2014. During the study, Bulgaria, Spain, Belgium and Hungary have adopted strict anti-smoking regulations in bars, restaurants and offices.
These new laws, and the strengthening of existing ones, are reflected in the results. According to the analysis, 25% of Europeans reported having been smoked in a bar in 2014 against 45% five years earlier. In restaurants, neighbor’s smoke embarrassed less than 12% of Europeans compared to more than 30% complaining about it in 2009.
More exposure at work
But this good news for the health of non-smokers stops at the office door. More than 27% of Europeans said they were exposed to second-hand smoke at their workplace in 2014, compared to nearly 24% in 2009.
“Our results suggest that progress has been made to protect the health of customers in bars or restaurants, but it is very worrying to see an increase in the number of employees exposed to cigarettes in offices, stores or factories”, commented Dr. Filippos Filippidis, author of the study.
According to the researcher’s analysis, this non-compliance with anti-smoking laws seems to concern a small number of countries. “Some states like Sweden, Great Britain or Ireland, have made great strides and are setting an example. Others, such as Greece or Cyprus, are far behind, ”he regrets.
A deadly exposure
“I can easily compare my homeland, Greece, and Great Britain, a country in which I have worked for years,” he continues. They both have very good anti-smoking laws but efforts to implement them in Greece have been almost non-existent. This results in high proportions of Greeks exposed to passive smoking. “
The impact of this exposure on health is however well established. People exposed to smoke are more at risk of having a stroke, coronary artery disease or even lung cancer. Thus passive smoking is responsible for the death of 600,000 people each year.
For Dr Filippidis and his team, convincing recalcitrant countries is a major issue. They will therefore continue their work and try to understand why some states fail to implement an anti-smoking policy.
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