1 in 5 Students Ride in Cars With Smokers

CHICAGO - A CDC report estimates more than 1 in 5 high school and middle school students and ride in cars with someone who is smoking.

The research, released online Monday in Pediatrics, is based on national surveys at both public and private schools. Students were asked how often they rode in cars while someone was smoking within the past week. The most common answer was one or two days. The smoker could be a parent, a friend or someone else, but the study didn’t specify.

Secondhand smoke exposure has been linked with breathing problems and allergy symptoms. The report recommends more restrictions to prevent secondhand smoke in cars.

Anti-smoking advocates have focused on cars because of research showing they many be more dangerous than bars, homes or other more open areas.

"There is no risk-free level of exposure to secondhand smoke," the CDC report says.

Overall, 22 percent of teens and pre-teens were exposed to secondhand smoke in cars in 2009, the latest data available. That figure declined gradually during the decade, from 40 percent in 2000, the study found. But still, the numbers of kids still facing the risks "is certainly problematic," said CDC researcher Brian King, the study's lead author.

"The car is the only source of exposure for some of these children, so if you can reduce that exposure, it's definitely advantageous for health," King said.

The CDC says opening a car window will not protect kids from cigarette smoke inside.

Measures banning smoking in cars when children are present have been enacted in a handful of states and proposed in several others. The study authors say similar bans should be adopted elsewhere.

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