Secondhand smoke and illness: are mother-child pairs from low socio-economic strata at increased risk in Bangladesh?

OBJECTIVES: To examine: 1) whether exposure to secondhand smoke (SHS) at home is associated with symptoms of self-reported illness among mother-child pairs (MCPs); and 2) the relationship between low socio-economic status and SHS exposure and the role these play as obstacles to the reduction of risk of illness in MCPs.METHOD: A cross-sectional study was conducted in Rajshahi District, Bangladesh, from May to July 2017. A total of 541 MCPs were interviewed.RESULTS: The prevalence of SHS exposure at home in our sample data was 49.0%. SHS exposure was found to be associated with a higher likelihood of any self-reported rhinitis, any respiratory symptoms and any reproductive health problems among mothers. SHS exposure in children was found to be associated with a higher likelihood of any self-reported rhinitis and food sensitisation, any respiratory symptoms and otitis media. Our findings also suggested that although SHS had an independently adverse effect on MCPs, wealth moderated the likelihood of illness.CONCLUSIONS: MCPs who were both poor and exposed to SHS were uniquely disadvantaged in terms of their poor health conditions than MCPs who were wealthier and exposed to SHS.