PTI
Washington, August 20
People who live in close proximity to tobacco smokers may be at increased risk of cancer, as a new study published in The Lancet journal has found that second-hand smoke is the 10th biggest risk factor for the disease .
Second-hand smoke fatal for children and adults
Secondhand smoke can cause health problems in children and adults and can even be fatal. Since 1964, about 2.5 thousand people who do not smoke have died from health problems caused by exposure to secondhand smoke. US Center for Disease Control and Prevention
Using results from the Global Burden of Diseases, Injuries, and Risk Factors (GBD) 2019 study, researchers investigated how 34 behavioral, metabolic, environmental, and occupational risk factors contributed to deaths and ill health from 23 types of cancer in 2019.
Changes in cancer burden between 2010 and 2019 due to risk factors were also assessed. Cancer burden estimates were based on mortality and disability-adjusted life years (DALYs), a measure of years of life lost due to death and years lived with disability.
Researchers from the University of Washington, USA, assumed that all people living with a daily smoker were exposed to tobacco smoke. They used surveys to estimate the proportion of individuals exposed to secondhand smoke at work.
The study found that smoking, alcohol consumption and a high body mass index (BMI) were the top three risk factors for cancer. They followed unsafe sex, high fasting blood glucose, particulate air pollution, asbestos exposure, diets low in whole grains and milk, and secondhand smoke.
These factors accounted for 3.7 million deaths and 87.8 million DALYs in 2019, the researchers said.