Respiratory illness in nonsmokers chronically exposed to tobacco smoke in the work place.

We evaluated CO levels as an index of cigarette smoke in the work place and analyzed diary entries on respiratory symptoms, eye irritation, chest colds and lost days from work due to respiratory illness in 40 passive smokers (nonsmokers chronically exposed to tobacco smoke in the work place) and 40 control subjects (nonsmokers not exposed to tobacco smoke in the work place) matched for age and gender. Passive smokers experienced greater CO levels during the workday. Also they reported significantly more cough, greater phlegm production, more shortness of breath, greater eye irritation, more chest colds and more days lost from work due to chest colds than control subjects. Nonsmoking workers and their employers are likely to incur significant financial loss because of missed workdays due to illnesses resulting from exposure to second-hand tobacco smoke.