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(Ivanhoe Newswire) -- Married to a smoker? Then you might be at significantly higher risk of having a stroke.
In a new study based on data pulled from the Health and Retirement Study conducted by the National Institute on Aging, researchers found a 42 percent higher risk of stroke among never-smokers married to current smokers when compared to never-smokers married to never-smokers. Former smokers married to current smokers had a 72 percent increased risk. Only current smokers married to current smokers were unaffected by spousal smoking -- they had higher stroke risks when compared to never-smokers, but it was likely due to their own smoking rather than the secondhand smoking coming from their spouse.
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The good news is, nonsmokers married to former smokers saw no increased risk of stroke, suggesting the problem can be solved by getting your spouse to kick the habit.
"These findings indicate that spousal smoking increases stroke risk among nonsmokers and former smokers," write the authors. "The health benefits of quitting smoking likely extend beyond individual smokers to affect their spouses, potentially multiplying the benefits of smoking cessation."
Many studies have linked exposure to secondhand smoke to higher heart disease risks, but few have looked at the risk of stroke in people forced to breathe in the smoke of others. This study is among the first to find a link, probably because it looked at people in an older age group, when stroke becomes more common.
SOURCE: American Journal of Preventive Medicine, published online July 29, 2008
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