Children who are exposed to second-hand smoke are twice as likely to develop meningitis and are at a higher risk for other invasive bacterial diseases, researchers at the Harvard School of Public Health have found.
The study published in this week’s PLoS Medicine journal also uncovered a possible link between second-hand smoke exposure and the incidence of invasive pneumococcal disease and Haemophilus influenzae type b, both of which may cause pneumonia, bacteremia or meningitis.
The effects of second-hand smoke were particularly pronounced in young children under the age of six, whose immune systems are still developing.
To arrive at these findings, researchers reviewed 42 published studies which showed the effects of second-hand smoke on bacteria levels. Most of these studies were done in high-income countries where children are inoculated against these diseases, but the findings could be of significant importance in developing nations where exposure to second-hand smoke is growing and vaccination rates are low.
"Because the burden of invasive bacterial disease is highest in developing countries where second-hand smoke is increasing, there is a need for high-quality studies to confirm these results, and for interventions to reduce exposure of children to second-hand smoke," concludes the study.