October 01, 2013
Smoke in cars affecting tamariki
Tamariki Maori are still being exposed to secondhand smoke in cars at greater rates than other children.
A study by the ASPIRE 2025 research group published in the international journal Tobacco Control found almost a quarter of New Zealand year 10 school students reported exposure to secondhand smoke in the previous week.
Co-director Richard Edwards from Otago University’s department of public health says there are marked inequalities in exposure by ethnicity and socio-economic position which have not reduced in the seven years the survey has been run.
He says secondhand smoke in cars is hazardous to children both because it is at high levels and because it is linked to children taking up smoking.
He’s calling on the Government to follow the example of other countries and require cars in which children are travelling to be smokefree.
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