Around 150 bar workers in Ireland will die every year from ill health caused by passive smoking. That is according to a leading US health expert, who based his prediction on the level of environmental smoke in Irish bars.
The leading American health physicist, James Repace, said that working or relaxing in a smoky environment, such as a bar, poses grave health risks. Many non-smokers suffer from the diseases of active smoking, when they inhale toxic chemicals such as arsenic, benzene and vinyl chloride from second-hand smoke.
The US Environmental Protection Agency has concluded that second-hand smoke is a known human carcinogen. Spouses of smokers run a 24% risk of developing lung cancer, and workers in the hospitality industry - including bar workers - are at high risk.
Dr Repace, who is in Ireland for a seminar organised by the Office of Tobacco Control, said that a Western Health Board study on the levels of smoke in bars showed that approximately 150 bar workers a year in Ireland will die from ill health caused by environmental tobacco smoke.
Dr Michael Boland of the Office of Tobacco Control said all workers who were exposed to environmental tobacco smoke on a regular basis in their workplace should be concerned. Smoke-free workplaces should be the norm, he said.
