Exposure to second-hand smoke increases a person’s risk of developing early signs a heart disease.

According to a new study, signs of coronary artery calcification were found in 26 percent of people who never smoked, but were exposed to varying levels of second-hand smoke as an adult or child, compared to just 18 percent in the general population.

The more you’re exposed to second-hand tobacco smoke, the more likely you are to develop early signs of heart disease, the study indicates. And those who reported higher levels of second-hand smoke exposure had the greatest evidence of calcification, a build-up of calcium in the artery walls.

After taking other heart risk factors into account, the researchers concluded that people exposed to low, moderate or high levels of second-hand smoke were 50, 60 and 90 percent, respectively, more likely to have evidence of calcification than those who had minimal exposure.

“This research provides additional evidence that second-hand smoke is harmful and may be even more dangerous than we previously thought,” said author Dr Harvey Hecht, from Mount Sinai Medical Centre in New York City. The study findings were presented at the annual meeting of the American College of Cardiology (ACC) last week.

The health effects of second-hand smoke on coronary artery calcification remained whether the exposure was during childhood or adulthood, the results showed.

“We actually found the risk of second-hand smoke exposure to be an equivalent or stronger risk factor [for coronary artery calcification] than other well-established ones such as high cholesterol, hypertension and diabetes. Passive exposure to smoke seems to independently predict both the likelihood and extent of [calcification],” Hecht added.

The findings provide yet more evidence of the need for enforceable public smoking bans and other measures to protect people from second-hand smoke, he said.

“Tobacco smoke can damage the coronary arteries of non-smokers through many different ways, which can lead to plaque formation and then to heart attacks, so this lends more [credence] to enforcing smoking bans,” Hecht noted in an ACC news release.

Source: HealthDay News