Smoke advt attacked

Press, 4 March 1989, Page 9

Smoke advt attacked

A health promotion programme, Heartbeat New Zealand, has criticised Tobacco Institute advertisements which claim that cigarette smoke is harmless to non-smokers. The programme’s director, Dr David Hay, said yesterday that the advertisements should be used “for lighting the burner.” The institute’s advertisements concern proposed anti-smoking legislation and compare smoking with other perceived nuisances such as barbecues and lawnmowers. Advertisements say that science has not estab-

lished that cigarette smoking by others causes disease among nonsmokers. Dr Hay said that six out of seven studies have shown an increased risk of coronary heart disease in non-smokers exposed to smoking by spouses. The risk in men was 30 per cent higher in nonsmokers whose spouse was a smoker as opposed to a non-smoker. For women, the risk was 20 per cent greater, said Dr Hay. “If these figures continue to be confirmed by other studies, many New Zealand heart attack

deaths may be related to involuntary smoking.” Such evidence was the main reason why healthrelated groups were trying to provide some protection for nonsmokers, he said. The Tobacco Institute’s advertising claimed that the Government was under pressure from “a small group of antLsmoking extremists” to bring in anti-smoking legislation. “We are not extremists but simply ordinary people who value health and freedom — the freedom to breathe clean air. Our concern is.health, not profit” said Dr Hay.