... or not. A study released by the American Heart Association shows that even tiny amounts of air pollution and cigarette smoke can dramatically increase your risk for cardiovascular disease. Researchers from Brigham Young University analyzed data from more than 1 million adults, noting smoking habits and exposure to secondhand smoke and air pollution. Their findings suggest breathing in far less than one cigarette a day worth of smoke increases your risk of cardiovascular disease by 20 percent to 30 percent. Wow. We all need a breath of fresh air.

Meanwhile, two new studies -- one in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology and one in AHA's Circulation -- publishing Sept. 29 found that smoking bans cut heart attacks by 17 percent and that this effect increases over time. (See CardioSmart for more coverage of these studies.)

It was amazing being in Spain at ESC -- there is smoking everywhere, and it’s very obnoxious in restaurants and public areas. We’ve made a lot of progress in these regards, but more is needed.

*** Image from Flickr (SuperFantastic). ***