Smoking Bans Improve Health, WHO Says

Smoking bans cause several positive health effects that are confirmed by research, the World Health Organization says. Agency researchers looked at previous studies and reports on the subject. They found that the bans help smokers to quit or cut back. They also protect people from secondhand smoke and reduce respiratory symptoms in workers. The bans also do not hurt business for restaurants or bars, researchers found. They said heart benefits also may occur. In some studies, hospital admissions for heart disease fell 10% to 20% in the year after a smoking ban was enacted. Reuters Health news service wrote about the report June 30. It was published in the journal Lancet Oncology.