Hypertension or high blood pressure may occur among children who inhale tobacco smoke one way or another, according to a recent study. The findings of this study show that 6 percent of the children experienced high blood pressure after exposure to tobacco smoke in comparison to 4 percent of the children who do not have such exposure.
The findings of this study appeared recently in JAMA Network Open.
In this study, the researchers referred to exposure to tobacco smoke as a child being a smoker, living around a smoker, or having nicotine in the system. The researchers collected the data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. This survey was conducted from the year 2007 to 2016. It included 8,520 children aged from 8 to 9 years. The data shows that 43 percent of these children experienced exposure to tobacco smoke in one way or another.
According to Dr. Karen Wilson, the chairperson of the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) Tobacco Consortium, the figures from this data are concerning. Dr. Wilson mentioned that most believe that the rate of smoking is decreasing but the reality is different. Even though the number of adult tobacco smokers is decreasing, a lot of the children still get exposed to the smoke. Moreover, children living around smokers such as adult or their parents can adapt to this habit as well.
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These children are at a high risk of high blood pressure and other diseases such as cardiovascular disease. The only way to tackle hypertension in children is through medication but most adults do not agree to this. The findings of this study also show that 16 percent of the children with exposure to smoke from tobacco experienced an elevation in blood pressure. Moreover, the incidence of elevated blood pressure was 11 percent in those children who do not have this exposure.
During the coronavirus pandemic, most people are cooped up inside their house and living closely. Also, most countries have some restrictions due to which most families spend a lot of their time indoors. Some parents now smoke inside the house due to the restrictions and expose their children to the harmful smoke of tobacco.
Due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, most smokers take tobacco or other drugs inside their house. This directly increases the exposure of children to toxic smoke from these drugs. Meanwhile, parents can teach their children about the harms of smoking and protect them from inhaling the smoke. Experts also suggest that people who live with children should try quitting this habit to save the kids from the toxic effects of tobacco smoke.
People who wish to quit smoking can refer to several resources that help with such issues. They can also take up medications or nicotine replacement therapy to give up this habit. The decrease in the smoking rate among adults will automatically save children from adopting this habit in the future. Also, giving up smoking will not only save the health of their child but improve the parent’s health as well.
