Respiratory Health of
Bartenders Improves Rapidly When Bars Become Smoke-free
- Ban also potentially reduces risk of lung cancer and cardiovascular disease
CHICAGO -- Bartenders whose exposure to secondhand smoke was reduced by a new
California law showed quick respiratory health improvement, according to an
article in the December 9 issue of The Journal of the American Medical
Association (JAMA).
Mark D. Eisner, M.D., of the University of California at San Francisco, and
colleagues report on the observable health benefits to bartenders from a new
California law that prohibits smoking in bars. The law provides a smoke-free
work environment for bartenders, a profession traditionally exposed to large
amounts of secondhand smoke at their workplace. The study found that the
bartenders were reporting improved respiratory health and had improved lung
function less than two months after the smoking ban began.
As part of the study, 53 bartenders in San Francisco were interviewed before
and after the smoking ban took effect. Thirty-nine (74 percent) bartenders
reported respiratory symptoms (wheezing, shortness of breath, morning cough or
phlegm production) before the smoking ban. Twenty-three (59 percent) of these
reported being symptom-free after the smoking ban. Forty-one (77 percent) of
the bartenders reported eye, nose or throat irritation at the beginning of the
study. Thirty-two (78 percent) of these reported resolution of their symptoms
after the smoking ban.
The self-reported exposure to secondhand smoke, also known as environmental
tobacco smoke (ETS), on the job declined from an average of 28 hours per week
to an average of two hours per week for bartenders in the study. The authors
note: "Despite the prohibition of smoking, 29 subjects (55 percent) continued
to report some ETS exposure (greater than one hour per week) while working as
bartenders."
The study also measured lung function using a spirometer, a test which
measures the rate at which a patient exhales air from the lungs and the
total volume exhaled. After adjusting for personal smoking habits and
recent upper respiratory tract infections, the tests showed improvement
after the smoking ban for the total volume of air breathed out (FVC) and
the volume of air breathed out in the first second of the test (FEV1).
According to the authors: "Strong epidemiologic evidence links ETS exposure
with lung cancer and atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease. As a result, ETS
has been estimated as the third leading preventable cause of death." They
continue: "Bar and tavern workers, in particular, are exposed to high ambient
levels of ETS, reaching levels four to six times higher than in other
workplaces. This high-level exposure is paralleled by an increased risk of
lung cancer in bartenders, after controlling for personal smoking."
The authors note: "In addition to potentially reducing the long-term risk of
lung cancer and cardiovascular disease, workplace smoking prohibition appears
to have immediate beneficial effects on adult respiratory health." The authors
continue: "Our study ... helps confirm the adverse impact of ETS exposure on
immediate respiratory health."
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