New research has suggested that race may be an important factor in susceptibility to environmental tobacco smoke. The study was done in response to higher rates of asthma, sudden-infant death syndrome and low birth weight in African American children.

Doctors from the Cincinnati Childrens Hospital Medical Center tested 220 asthmatic children who were routinely exposed to cigarette smoke in the home. The children belonged to different ethnic backgrounds and ranged in age from 5 to 12 years.

The doctors tested levels of cotinine in the children’s blood serum and hair. Cotinine is the byproduct produced when nicotine enters the body. The children’s homes were also fitted with nicotine dosimeters to find out how much smoke they were exposed to. After six months the children were seen to be exposed to approximately the same amount of nicotine regardless of age. The serum and hair samples however showed that black children had 32% higher serum cotinine levels than Caucasian kids; their hair samples contained 4 times more cotinine.

Doctors suggest that black children, and adults, may be more vulnerable to other toxins in tobacco smoke than other races.