Assessment of environmental tobacco smoke in Memphis bars and restaurants

Objective: The Tennessee Non Smokers Protection Act (NSPA) which went into effect in October 2007 prohibits smoking in all enclosed public places within the state of Tennessee with a few exceptions like restaurants and bars that solely serve patrons age 21 and over. The purpose of this study was to assess the implementation and effectiveness of the NSPA in a sample of Memphis/Shelby county bars and restaurants. Methods: Ten months after the NSPA went into effect, 38 venues (18 covered and 20 exempt from NSPA) were sampled for particulate matter less than 2.5 microns in diameter (PM 2.5) using TSI Sidepak monitor. PM 2.5 is a marker of the ETS suspended in the environment. Compliance to the law, in terms of patronage was measured by person-counts. Results: On average, the PM 2.5 level decreased 88% in venues covered by the NSPA. Bars that allowed smoking had the highest PM 2.5 levels (average 168 ìg/m3) and were 11.4 times higher than in smoke-free restaurants (average 14.7 ìg/m3). Hundred percent compliance to the law was observed in all venues. All smoke free venues had ‘no smoking' signs posted at the entrance. Similarly, all TN NSPA exempt venues were 100% compliant by posting signs at the entrance stating the age limit of patrons they served at all times. Conclusion: Tennessee NSPA effectively improved indoor air quality in venues covered by the law. However, NSPA exempt venues continue to be a major source of ETS exposure to employees and patrons in such venues.