Smoking ban 'reduced annual rate of child respiratory problems by 11,000'

Researchers say introduction of UK’s smoke-free legislation in 2007 was followed by immediate 3.5% drop in admissions among under-15s, saving the health service £17m a year

Banning smoking in public places in England helped cut the number of children being admitted to hospital with respiratory infections by about 11,000 a year, researchers have said. The introduction of smoke-free legislation in 2007 was followed by an immediate 3.5% drop in admissions among under-15s. The biggest fall, of nearly 14%, was among those suffering chest infections, while there were smaller effects among admissions for nose, throat and sinus infections.

The researchers from Edinburgh, London, the Netherlands and the US estimated that the fall in admissions was saving the health service about £17m a year. Their work was published as the government’s Health and Social Care Information Centre prepared on Friday to release new figures on hospital admissions and deaths from diseases attributable to smoking.

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