engleski

Passive exposure to tobacco smoke: hair nicotine levels in preschool children

Hair nicotine levels were measured in children to establish the utility of the method in assessing exposure to environmental tobacco smoke (ETS). All 33 children (22 girls and 11 boys), aged five to seven, were recruited from a kindergarten in Zagreb, Croatia. Parents were asked to fill in a questionnaire the purpose of which was to indicate the degree of ETS exposure. Nicotine in the hair was measured using Gas chromatography/mass spectrometry. Hair nicotine levels ranged from below the detection limit (<0.1 ng/mg of hair) jto 7.89 ng/mg of hair. The difference in hair nicotine levels between children who lived with smokers (N=20 ; mean=4.43 ng/mg of hair) and those who did not live with smokers (N=13 ; mean=0.68 ng/mg of hair) was svery significant (t=5.456001 ; P<0.01).

environmental tobacco smoke; hair nicotine levels; preschool children

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