Psychological Problems Rise with Secondhand Smoke Exposure

People who are regularly exposed to secondhand smoke had much higher levels of mental-health problems than those who are not exposed, according to a new study that also found that risk of being admitted to a psychiatric hospital nearly tripled among “passive smokers.”

Reuters reported June 8 that the study involving 5,560 non-smoking adults and 2,595 smokers with no history of mental illness found that psychological distress appeared to rise with secondhand-smoke exposure. Current smokers were the most likely to have mental-health problems, the study noted.

Nonsmokers who were exposed to secondhand smoke were 62 percent more likely to self-report psychological distress than nonsmokers who did not have detectable levels of cotinine, a biomarker for nicotine exposure, in their bloodstream.

Researcher Mark Hamer of University College London noted that animal studies have suggested that tobacco use may depress mood. “Taken together, therefore, our data are consistent with other emerging evidence to suggest a causal role of nicotine exposure in mental health,” the study said.

The study was published in the Archives of General Psychiatry.