Second Hand Smoke and Hypertension in Kids

Adding to the long list of reasons for why you should not smoke around kids, a new study out of Switzerland finds that children living with a parent who smokes are more likely to develop high blood pressure.

Researchers analyzed data on 4,200 five and six year old kids, and found that those who lived with smokers are 21% more likely to have dangerously high blood pressure, or hypertension (Defined as blood pressure values in the top 15% for their age group). This is especially concerning considering that high blood pressure in childhood tends to carry over into adulthood, putting them at risk for heart disease and stroke later on. Some 46,000 non smokers die each year in America due to heart disease brought about by living with second hand smoke.

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