Monday, November 14, 2005
Smoke-free indoor air laws linked to immediate drop in heart attacks
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
14 November 2005
Contact: Patricia Demchak, Boulder County Public Information Officer, 303-441-3399 or
Kimberly Hills, Tobacco Education and Prevention Partnership Program Coordinator, 303-413-7524
Smoke-free indoor air laws linked to immediate drop in heart attacks
Smoke-free indoor air laws like the ones in place in Boulder, Louisville, Longmont, Superior and unincorporated Boulder County may cause an immediate and significant decline in heart attack admissions to local hospitals, according to a study released today.
A consortium of healthcare and public health organizations in Colorado have announced that a controlled study of hospital admissions data at two major metropolitan hospitals reveals a sharp decline in heart attack admissions following enactment of a citywide smoke-free indoor air ordinance.
“This is a clear demonstration of the rapid and very real benefits our communities can achieve by ensuring a smoke-free atmosphere in workplaces and all buildings open to the public,” Boulder County Public Health Director Chuck Stout said.
The analysis, titled the Pueblo Heart Study, examined electronic medical records from the two primary hospitals in Pueblo, evaluating the number of heart attacks over a three-year period from January 2002-December 2004. This timeframe covered the 18 months before implementation of the city’s Smokefree Indoor Air Act as well as the 18 months after the law was put in place.
Results showed that heart attack rates among Pueblo city residents decreased by nearly 30 percent after implementation of the city’s Smokefree Indoor Air Act. By contrast, heart attack hospitalizations for individuals living outside the city limits – and unaffected by the smoke-free air law – increased by 26 percent during the same time period, according to the study.
The Pueblo Heart Study also compared heart attack hospitalizations during the same time period in Colorado Springs, another geographically isolated but nearby community that does not have a smoke-free indoor air ordinance. There were no significant changes in the number of people hospitalized for heart attacks in that area.
The study confirms previous findings from a similar study performed in Montana in 2002.
“Smoking is far and away the single most important risk factor for coronary artery disease. Estimates suggest it increases risk by up to 17-fold. It may even be more important in women. This study shows how public policy can reduce the risk of heart attack in an at-risk population,” said Dr. Nelson Trujillo, a cardiologist with Rocky Mountain Cardiology in Boulder.
The study’s authors attribute much of the sharp decline in heart attacks to a near-elimination of the rapid and harmful effects of secondhand smoke on blood platelets and the arteries that supply blood to the heart. Additionally, smoke-free environments encourage smokers to stop or reduce smoking, which also reduces heart attack risk.
“This information substantiates what we’ve suspected and told the public for years: that secondhand smoke is deadly and that smoke-free public spaces are in the best interest of everybody,” said Kimberly Hills, Program Coordinator for Boulder County’s Tobacco Education and Prevention Partnership (TEPP).
Eighty-eight percent of Boulder County residents live in communities with smoke-free indoor air ordinances. In Lafayette, which lacks such an ordinance, residents have formed the Smoke Free Lafayette Coalition to encourage city leaders to adopt a smoke-free ordinance.
“With this new information, our elected officials in Lafayette cannot ignore the need to protect the health and well being of their citizens,” said Lisa Brone, co-chair of the Smoke Free Lafayette Coalition. “As a family physician, I want to emphasize how important the Pueblo study is in confirming how damaging second hand smoke is. There is every reason to believe that Lafayette could share a similar decline in number of heart attacks after enacting a smoke free ordinance in public places.”
Boulder County Public Health and TEPP have actively supported local grassroots movements to get smoking banned from inside public buildings, restaurants and work places. The organizations offer help, resources and guidance for smokers who would like to quit.
On Thursday, Nov. 17, Boulder County will participate in the American Cancer Society’s “Great American Smokeout,” a national event encouraging smokers everywhere to give up their cigarettes and smoking habits.
“Quitting smoking is one of the best things you can possibly do for yourself and the people you love,” said Molly Hanson, Community Health Specialist for TEPP. “It’s not easy – many people who try to quit on their own fail – but today there are resources and professionals to help every step of the way. Quitting smoking is absolutely attainable and we are here to help.”
The Pueblo Heart Study was undertaken by a consortium of healthcare and public organizations in Colorado, including: The University of Colorado Health Sciences Center, Parkview Medical Center of Pueblo, Pueblo City-County Health Department, Centura Health of Denver and the Colorado Prevention Center.
For more information about this study, or to obtain contact information for the primary researches of the Pueblo Heart Study, contact Kimberly Hills, TEPP Program Coordinator, at 303-413-7524.
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Dan Rowland, Communications SpecialistBoulder County Commissioners’ Office
drowland@bouldercounty.org
303-441-3399
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