Helena, Montana Study

In the beginning of 2002, Helena, Montana banned public smoking. In June of that year, doctors from St. Peter's Community Hospital noticed that heart attack patients were becoming fewer and fewer. The doctors proposed a study with it, and the National Cancer Institute funded it. According to thehealthierlife.com, within 6 months of the ban in effect, heart attack rates dropped 60%. Unfortunately, bars and other various establishments that had to get rid of smoking, were slowly going out of business. So after 6 months with the ban, Helena got rid of it and brought public smoking back. Doctors then said that shortly after smoking was okay again, heart attack rates went back to the way they were before the ban went into effect.

However, the study is not yet published, therefore, it is not 'valid', which means that we can't conclude that not smoking in public areas could guarantee such a dramatic outcome. Journalists and other doctors believe that the study may be over exaggerated and say that there are many things that have been left out of the reports. The American Heart Association asks about non-smoker heart attack rates compared to smoker heart attack rates before the ban started. So until everything in the study is analyzed, we can't believe that the no smoking ban caused a drop in heart attack rates. The study itself is something to think about though. I wouldn't doubt that this isn't true. As most people know, heart attacks are closely linked with smoking. If second hand smoke is even more harmful than first hand smoke, then I think that the elimination of smoking around innocent people in public can definitely decrease the number of heart attacks.

 

Advocacy News 5/16/2003
<http://www.americanheart.org/presenter.jhtml?identifier=3011851>