Although a smoking ban in Helena, Montana lasted only six months before it was overturned, the rate of heart attacks during that time dropped from seven a month to just three, according to a recent study. While larger studies are needed to confirm these findings, the size of the reported decrease has startled many public health advocates and lent momentum to anti-smoking advocates in other cities. While the dangers of second-hand smoke (also known as Environmental Tobacco Smoke, or ETS) are extremely well-documented, no prior study has linked a smoking ban with a drop in the community-wide incidence of heart attacks. The study, by Richard P. Sargent, MD, Robert Shepard, MD, and Stanton Glantz, PhD, took place at St Peter's Community Hospital in Helena.
Helena’s ban on smoking in public places provided researchers with a unique opportunity to study such legislation. Because the ban lasted only six months, researchers could study the incidence of heart attacks before, during, and after the ban. Also, because St. Peter’s is the only hospital serving Helena, researchers were able to track the impact of the ban on the population as a whole. The size of the town limits the significance of the study’s findings: its authors acknowledge that the study should be repeated with a much larger test group, in a larger community. Nonetheless, the findings have been widely cited by activists and experts in many cities. According to M. Cass Wheeler, the CEO of the American Heart Association, "There has never been better evidence in support of clean indoor air laws."
In Ireland, which recently became the first country to enact a nationwide ban on smoking in public places, the news was well-received by some policymakers. According to BBC online, "...once it is clear how the ban has worked in Ireland it is thought there may be a 'domino effect' across Europe." Some expect that Ireland may provide much more conclusive evidence about the results of smoking bans on public health than is currently available.
