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Second-hand smoke exposure caused 1.66 million deaths in 2023

A study published in The Lancet Public Health reveals that approximately 2.71 billion people were exposed to second-hand smoke in 2023. This exposure, which includes 767 million children under the age of 15, contributed to an estimated 1.66 million deaths and 44.8 million years of healthy life lost globally.

While the age-standardized prevalence of exposure has declined by 22.2% since 1990, the absolute number of people affected has remained stable or increased due to global population growth. Significant regional disparities exist; exposure has nearly doubled in Sub-Saharan Africa and increased by 72.1% in North Africa and the Middle East. Conversely, Latin America and the Caribbean saw the largest declines.

Ischemic heart disease was identified as the primary cause of health loss, accounting for 12 million disability-adjusted life years (DALYs). Among children, the most significant impact was 5.2 million respiratory tract infections. Researchers emphasize that there is no safe level of exposure to second-hand smoke, noting that sidestream smoke—the unfiltered smoke from the burning end of a cigarette—contains higher concentrations of toxins and carcinogens than the smoke inhaled by the smoker.

Entities

China · Global Burden of Disease · Global Burden of Disease Study · India · Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation · National Institutes of Health · PubMed · The Lancet Public Health · University of Washington · World Health Organization

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