Oct. 22, 2019&mdash;Children whose parents smoke face a raised risk of developing a serious heart rhythm disorder later in life, a new study suggests.
That disorder is atrial fibrillation (A-fib). It affects at least 2.7 million people nationwide. Left untreated, this irregular heartbeat can lead to blood clots, stroke, heart failure and other life-threatening complications. 
It's well known that smoking raises the risk of A-fib. But now it appears that secondhand smoke may contribute to A-fib too. 
The more cigarettes smoked, the greater the danger 
The study included more than 2,800 children whose parents smoked. About 82% of the kids breathed in their parents' secondhand smoke at some point. 
Over 40 years, 14.3% of the children were diagnosed with A-fib. 
The study found that for every pack of cigarettes parents smoked daily, the children's risk of developing A-fib as adults climbed by 18%.
Risky role-modeling
Children raised by smokers are more likely to smoke themselves. That tendency was true in this study too. And the likelihood that the children of smokers will follow their parents' example may be another reason A-fib is tied to parental smoking, the researchers said. 
But it's also one more reason for parents who smoke to stop. Quitting may make it less likely that children will experiment with smoking&mdash;the first step toward addiction. 
The study appeared in the <a target="_blank" href="http://www.onlinejacc.org/">Journal of the American College of Cardiology</a>.
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Parents' smoking tied to future heart problems in kids 

Here's another way secondhand smoke harms children.