Workplace Exposure to Environmental Tobacco Smoke and High Density Lipoprotein Cholesterol among Nonsmokers

Abstract

There are few epidemiologic studies among adult nonsmokers on the effects of workplace environmental tobacco smoke on high density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C). The authors investigated this relation, using data from health examinations conducted in 1995 on 3,062 Japanese nonsmokers in a total of 27 municipal offices with few smoking restrictions. Multiple regression analysis with adjustments for age, body mass index, alcohol drinking, and sports activities showed that in women, and in men lacking both alcohol consumption and sports activities characteristics, there were inverse linear relations between workplace smoking indices and HDL-C levels. Multivariate logistic regression showed that nonsmoking women in the upper two thirds of offices ranked by smoking intensity had an increased risk of low HDL-C levels (<45 mg), taking those in the lowest third of offices as reference (the medium third: odds ratio = 1.7; 95% confidence interval: 1.2, 2.5; the highest third: odds ratio = 1.6; 95% confidence interval: 1.1, 2.4). The results indicated that workplace environmental tobacco smoke exposure is associated with HDL-C among nonsmokers. However, the lack of data on home exposure limits causal inferences about the effects of workplace exposure.

Cardiovascular Effects of Secondhand Smoke

“…74 Passive smoking leads to lower levels of HDL in adults. 75,76 Passive smokers (exposed to SHS for Ն6 h/d for Ն4 d/wk for at least the past 6 months) had HDL levels of 48.26Ϯ3.47 (meanϮSD) mg/dL compared with 55.59Ϯ4.24 mg/dL in those unexposed to SHS. HDL levels in passive smokers were indistinguishable from levels in active smokers (45.59Ϯ4.6 mg/dL) ( Table 2).…”

“…Nonsmoking women in the middle tertile and highest tertiles of SHS exposure were 1.7 (95% CI 1.2 to 2.5) and 1.6 (95% CI 1.1 to 2.4) times more likely to have low levels (Ͻ45 mg/dL) of HDL than those in with the lowest intensity of exposure, respectively. 76 Acute exposure to SHS also lowers HDL levels. Moffat et al 78 exposed 12 male subjects to 6 hours of SHS at concentrations similar to those found in a bar.…”

Arterial Intima-Media Thickness, Endothelial Function, and Apolipoproteins in Adolescents Frequently Exposed to Tobacco Smoke

“…16,17 In adults, heavy workplace exposure to tobacco smoke has been demonstrated to have an adverse influence on serum lipids. 18,19 Recently, it was indicated that maternal smoking in pregnancy is associ- 21 Exposure to tobacco smoke as indicated by objective measurement, serum cotinine concentration, has been frequently determined in school-aged children. The aim of the present study was to examine the effects of frequent exposure to tobacco smoke on vascular wall structure, endothelial function, and serum lipid profile in healthy 13-year-old adolescents.…”

“…16,17 In adults, heavy workplace exposure to tobacco smoke has been demonstrated to have an adverse influence on serum lipids. 18,19 Recently, it was indicated that maternal smoking in pregnancy is associ-ated with an increase in total cholesterol levels and trends toward adverse lipoprotein profiles in the young adult offspring. 20 However, there are no data on the relations of exposure to tobacco smoke and apolipoprotein (Apo) levels in children or adolescents.…”

Secondhand smoke exposure and cardiovascular disease

“…Specifically, SHS exposure can lower high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol levels as well as the levels of antiatherogenic lipoprotein subfractions (eg, HDL 2 ) [43][44][45]. These effects have been described in adults and children and are comparable in magnitude to those observed in active smokers.…”