Study Finds Link Between Secondhand Smoke & Early Vascular Aging in Flight Attendants

摘要

A study published in Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine has found that flight attendants who have past exposure to secondhand smoke have preclinical signs of accelerated vascular aging. According to the study by C. Noel Bairey-Merz of Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles, CA, abnormalities in blood vessel characteristics and function might account for an increase in cardiovascular risk among flight attendants with in-cabin secondhand smoke exposure.Supported by Flight Attendant Medical Research Institute, the study analyzed 26 flight attendants who had experienced occupational exposure to secondhand smoke before the 1988 and 1995 airline smoking bans. Of those analyzed, most were women with no known cardiovascular risk factors; past and current smokers were excluded from the study. According to researchers, the results showed abnormalities in pulse pressure, augmentation index and flow-mediated dilation, although blood pressure tests remained normal. According to researchers, these results suggest increased arterial stiffness and impaired function of the inner lining of the blood vessels, which points to signs of early vascular aging and can lead to future cardiovascular issues for those studied.