Passive Smoking in Germany and Poland: Comparison of Exposure Levels, Sources of Exposure, Validity, and Perception

Nonsmoking females age 35-65 years from Bremen, Germany (91 women), and Opole, Poland (98 women), were interviewed about their recent passive smoking exposure. We obtained urine samples at the time of interview and determined the concentration of cotinine as an indicator of tobacco smoke exposure. In Poland and in Germany, the vast majority of nonsmoking women are involuntarily exposed to environm…