Smoking in Cars Pollution Exceeds Toxic Levels, Study Shows [Details]

A new study has been released claiming that smoking in cars is more dangerous than previously thought.

The results come after doctors in the United Kingdom gathered data from smokers during 85 car rides, according to Tobacco Control.

The study was published Oct. 15, which found that when people smoked in their cars, it raised the levels of harmful pollutants above the acceptable limit set by the World Health Organization.

The doctors measured the fine particle pollutants which concentrated within vehicles with a smoker and nonsmoker using electronic monitors in the back seats.

The voluntary participants, a total of 17 with 14 of them who smoked, were told to follow their normal habits over three days. The study observed that from 104 trips, with an average of 27 minutes, 63 of those trips had no one smoke.

Out of the other 41 smoking trips, doctors found the levels of fine particle pollutants reached 85 micrograms per cubic meter on average.

The 85 mcg/cu. meter was compared to the World Health Organizations indoor pollution limit of 25 mcg/cu. meter.

Other factors of the volunteers driving trips such as opening windows didn't lower the findings enough to match the WHO limit.

"Children exposed to these levels of fine particulate are likely to suffer ill-health effects," says Sean Semple of the Scottish Centre for Indoor Air at the University of Aberdeen.

Semple led the driving study and says these findings go along with policy being put in place by countries to stop smoking while driving, especially in the case of children riding along.

"There are increasing numbers of countries legislating against smoking in cars and such measures may be appropriate to prevent the exposure of children to these high levels of second-hand smoke," Semple said.

The trips that had no smoking showed an average of 7.4 mcg/cu. meter.