两份独立报告显示，在公共场所实行禁烟令的国家，在禁烟一年心脏病发作减少17%,3年下降36%.

The number of heart attacks has fallen steeply in countries where bans on smoking in public places have been introduced, according to two independent reviews

Smoking bans were introduced in pubs and other public places in England and Wales in 2007. Photograph: Danny Lawson/PA

The ban on smoking in public places could reduce heart attacks by more than a third in some parts of the world, say researchers.

Two independent health reviews have found that heart attack rates dropped steeply in areas where bans have been introduced, with one reporting 36% fewer cases three years after smoke-free legislation came in.

Smoking in pubs, restaurants and other public spaces was banned in England and Wales in July 2007, a year after similar laws were introduced in Scotland. The Scottish ban led to a 14% fall in the number of people being admitted to hospital with a heart attack the following year.

A Department of Health study of heart attack rates in England and Wales is not due to report until next year, but experts believe the number of cases in the regions has already fallen by around 10% as a result of the smoking ban.

The latest reviews, which draw on published studies from the US, Canada, France, Italy, Ireland and Scotland, suggest heart attacks in Britain will fall even further over the next two years.

"While we obviously won't bring heart attack rates to zero, these findings give us evidence that in the short to medium term, smoking bans will prevent a lot of heart attacks," said James Lightwood, a health economist at the University of California in San Francisco and co-author of one of the reviews, published in the US journal Circulation.

Dr Lightwood analysed 13 published reports on heart attacks in countries or states where smoking bans have been introduced. A year after the bans were brought in, heart attacks had fallen by an average of 17%. After three years, the number of heart attacks had dropped by 36%.

"This study adds to the already strong evidence that secondhand smoke causes heart attacks, and that passing 100% smoke-free laws in all work places and public places is something we can do to protect the public," Dr Lightwood said.

Heart attacks may fall more modestly in Britain than other European countries because many workplaces imposed smoking bans before nationwide laws were passed.

A second review, by David Meyers at the University of Kansas, drew on 10 studies from the same regions. His report, which is published in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology, found heart attacks had fallen by 17% on average a year after smoking bans were imposed. Most of the benefit was seen among young people and non-smokers.

Smoking doubles the risk of heart attack by making blood clots form more easily and, in the longer term, by hardening the arteries. Passive smokers, who regularly inhale tobacco fumes from others, have around a 30% greater risk of heart attack.

Nearly 10m people in Britain smoke and around 114,000 die each year of smoking-related diseases. According to figures released by the Department of Health today, the NHS has saved 70,000 lives by supporting those who want to quit.

"The public smoking ban is the single most important and cost-effective health policy we have. The amount of money it will save the NHS is enormous," said John Britton, director of the UK Centre for Tobacco Control Studies at Nottingham University.

2007年在英国和威尔士的酒吧和其它公共场所推行禁烟令。照片：Danny Lawson/PA

研究者说在世界某些地区公共场所实行禁烟令能减少心脏病发作1/3以上。

两个独立的健康评论发现，在实行禁烟令的地区心脏病发作率急剧下降，在无烟立法之后3年报告病例少于36%.

2007年在英国和威尔士禁止在酒吧、餐馆和其它公共场所吸烟，一年之后类似法规在苏格兰实行。苏格兰人禁令导致在随后一年心脏病发作住院人数下降14%.

在英国和威尔士卫生部心脏病发作率研究一直到下一年才做出报告，但专家认为区域病例数由于禁烟令的结果早已下降到10%.

最新的评论，是根据美国、加拿大、法国、意大利、爱尔兰和苏格兰公布的研究，提出在英国心脏病发作，甚至在未来两年会进一步减少。

旧金山加利福尼亚大学的卫生经济学家和美国循环（Circulation）杂志公布一个评论的作者之一James Lightwood说："显然我们不能把心脏病发作率下降到零，这些发现带给我们的证据，短到中期之内，禁烟能防止许多心脏病发作".

Lightwood博士分析了施行禁烟法的一些国家或州区心脏病发作公布的13个报告。禁烟令实行一年之后，心脏病发作平均下降17%.3年之后心脏病发作数字下降36%.

"这研究增加了先前的强有力证据，吸二手烟引起心脏病发作，在所有工作区和公共场所我们能为保护公众做些事情，100%通过禁烟令。" Lightwood博士说。

在英国心脏病发作降低比欧洲其它国家更明显，因为很多工作场所在国家通过立法之前就已经强行禁烟了。

第二个评论是由堪萨斯大学的David Meyers从同区的10个研究得出的。他的报告在美国心脏病学会杂志公布，发现在实行禁烟令一年之后心脏病发作平均下降17%.在青年人和非吸烟者看到更大效益。

因为更容易形成凝血，天长日久，形成动脉硬化使吸烟者心脏病发作的危险成倍增加。被动吸烟，规律地吸入他人排放的烟气，心脏病发作的危险会提升30%.

在英国有近1000万人吸烟，每年约有114,000人因吸烟相关疾病毙命。按卫生部今天发表的数字，英国国民健康保险制度（NHS）支持戒烟者拯救70,000人的生命。

诺丁汉大学英国烟草控制研究中心主管John Britton说："公共禁烟令是我们的最重要和低成本高效健康政策。"