Restaurants, bars gain business under smoke ban

Publication Date: 2005-04-04

• Author:Stephen Smith
• Publication:Boston (MA) Globe

Sales and employment at Massachusetts restaurants and bars grew slightly during the first six months of a statewide smoking ban, disproving predictions that the prohibition would inflict serious damage on the hospitality industry, Harvard researchers are scheduled to report today.

As part of the study, analysts from the Harvard School of Public Health tested the air in 27 bars and restaurants both before and after the ban went into effect last July 5. The result: Dangerous cancer-causing toxins plummeted by 93 percent once cigarettes, cigars, and pipes were banished.

The findings arrive as the campaign to eliminate smoking from its last indoor public havens gains momentum not just nationally but globally . . .

an increasing body of evidence also suggests that what's good for the health of workers and patrons may also boost the bottom line of businesses.

''Now, we can tell other states considering this kind of law: 'If you implement this law, you're not only going to have a better work environment -- you don't have to affect the economics of your hospitality industry,' "