Secondhand Smoke Affects Infants The Most

Published on July 18, 2008 2:56 AM

At the American Heart Association's 48th Annual Conference on Cardiovascular Disease Epidemiology and Prevention researchers reported that toddlers are affected by secondhand smoke the most.

Researchers have found that cardiovascular diseases in adults are initiated during childhood, that’s why children mustn’t be exposed to secondhand smoke.

Tobacco smoke affects a young child’s not only respiratory system, but the cardiovascular system as well.

In a study were investigated 128 children, 2 to 5 years old and adolescents 9 to 14. Researchers found that children ages 2 to 5 absorbed six times more nicotine than children 9 to 14 from the same levels of parental smoking.

John Bauer, Ph.D., director of the Center for Cardiovascular Medicine at Nationwide Children's Hospital and Research Institute in Columbus, said: "Toddlers in the homes of smokers not only had higher levels of nicotine, but also had higher levels of markers for cardiovascular disease in the blood. The dose of smoke is greater in toddlers than adolescents who are able to move in and out of the home. Toddlers are like a fish in a fishbowl. They are exposed at a higher dose. And it appears that toddlers also are more susceptible to the cardiovascular effects of smoke."

Researchers also measured known inflammatory markers, such as intracellular adhesion molecules (ICAM), in the children blood.

Judith Groner, M.D., lead author of the study, pediatrician and ambulatory care physician at Nationwide Children's Hospital and Research Institute in Columbus, Ohio, noted: "When we analyzed our data by looking at the relationships between the number of smokers in the home and the EPC (Endothelial progenitor cells) levels, we found that in toddlers, there was an inverse relationship between secondhand smoke exposure and EPC prevalence. In other words, the more smokers the toddler was exposed to, the fewer EPC cells were circulating in his bloodstream. This relationship was not present among the adolescents."

Researchers noted also that the vascular endothelium plays a key role in developing cardiovascular health by maintaining the tone and circulation of the arteries and ICAM. Intracellular adhesion molecules are a specific marker of endothelial cell stress, which contributes to artery clogging and atherosclerosis, raising the risk of heart disease.

Groner added: "The combustion of the cigarettes appears to be causing endothelial damage which is reflected in the increase in soluble ICAM in exposed children. Toddlers who are in the vicinity of smokers in the home have a higher dose of tobacco chemicals. They live at home and can't escape. Young children also breathe faster, taking more smoke into their respiratory system."

She mentioned that cardiovascular effects of tobacco exposure in children are very similar to that of adults in the affect on the vascular wall. That’s why parents and adults in general should not smoke in homes with children if they want to bring up healthy children.