Passive smoking linked to 22,000 cases of children’s asthma each year
More than 20,000 chest infections, 120,000 bouts of middle ear disease and 200 cases of meningitis in youngsters are also thought to be linked to the effects of second-hand smoke, they said. Furthermore, 40 babies who die from sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) every year are thought to be linked to passive smoking – one in five of all SIDS deaths.
Passive smoking results in more than 300,000 GP consultations, 9,500 hospital admissions and costs the NHS about £23.3 million, the British-wide report from the Royal College of Physicians (RCP) said.
