This story was first published in digitalhealth.net
Smoking ban reduces child hospital admissions
The study, published in the European Respiratory Journal, looked at 1.6 million hospital admissions of under 14s from 2001-12. After the smoking ban, 11,000 fewer children were admitted to hospital with lung infections every year. The biggest effect of the ban was shown in the number of children suffering from chest infections, which has seen a admissions gradually reduce by almost 14 per cent.
Based on these findings, researchers have said that anti-smoking laws are improving children’s health and saving the NHS about £17 million a year.
Dr Jasper Been, of the University of Edinburgh and Maastricht University, said: "This study is further demonstration of the considerable potential of anti-smoking laws to improve child health.
"Although our results cannot definitively establish a cause and effect, the rigorous analysis clearly shows that the introduction of smoke-free legislation was associated with significant reductions in hospital admissions among children."
Hazel Cheeseman, director of policy at health charity Action on Smoking and Health (Ash), also commented on the research, she said: "Back in 2007, the opponents of smoke-free legislation claimed that it would lead to more people smoking at home, placing their children at greater risk.
"This research supports evidence from elsewhere that this fear has not been realised.
"Without the ban on smoking in public places the NHS would be seeing more sick children at a significant cost to the public purse."
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