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Indoor fine particle (PM 2.5 ) pollution exposure due to secondhand smoke in selected public places of Sri Lanka
Author(s) -
Nandasena Sumal,
Wickremasinghe Ananda R.,
Lee Kiyoung,
Sathiakumar Nalini
Publication year - 2012
Publication title -
american journal of industrial medicine
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.7
H-Index - 104
eISSN - 1097-0274
pISSN - 0271-3586
DOI - 10.1002/ajim.22040
Subject(s) - sri lanka , environmental health , secondhand smoke , smoke , particulates , indoor air quality , public place , public health , toxicology , medicine , environmental science , environmental engineering , meteorology , geography , environmental planning , engineering , architectural engineering , ecology , nursing , biology , tanzania
Background Secondhand smoke accounts for a considerable proportion of deaths due to tobacco smoke. Although the existing laws ban indoor smoking in public places in Sri Lanka, the level of compliance is unknown. Methods Fine particulate matter (PM 2.5 ) levels in 20 public places in Colombo, Sri Lanka were measured by a PM monitor (Model AM510—SIDEPAK Personal Aerosol Monitor). Different types of businesses (restaurants, bars, cafés, and entertainment venues) were selected by purposive sampling. Only the places where smoking was permitted were considered. Results The average indoor PM 2.5 ranged from 33 to 299 µg/m 3 . The average outdoor PM 2.5 ranged from 18 to 83 µg/m 3 . The indoor to outdoor PM 2.5 ratio ranged from 1.05 to 14.93. In all venues, indoor PM 2.5 levels were higher than the Sri Lankan ambient PM 2.5 standard of 50 µg/m 3 . All indoor locations had higher PM 2.5 levels as compared to their immediate outdoor surroundings. Conclusion The study highlights the importance of improving ventilation and enforcing laws to stop smoking in public places. Am. J. Ind. Med. 55:1129–1136, 2012. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.