By Matt Leingang
The Cincinnati Enquirer

Carl Perin, owner of Dooley's Deli on Fourth Street, says he was warned he'd go out of business if his restaurant went smoke-free. But Perin says business has doubled. (Tony Jones photo)

Diners who want to enjoy a meal without inhaling secondhand smoke will soon be able to check out a list of smoke-free restaurants in Cincinnati.

The Cincinnati Health Department is surveying the city's 1,960 eateries and will feature the list on its Web site, possibly by March.

This follows an effort begun last year by the Hamilton County Health District to document smoke-free restaurants located outside the city limits.

Officials want to help health-conscience consumers, but they also want to gauge where the industry is going. Hamilton County's survey, which may be completed by the summer, asks owners of restaurants where smoking is permitted if they would be open to dropping that policy.

SECONDHAND DANGERS

Secondhand smoke is harmful. In the United States, each year it is responsible for: • 35,000 to 40,000 deaths from heart disease in people who are not smokers. • 3,000 lung cancer deaths in nonsmoking adults. • 150,000 to 300,000 lower respiratory tract infections (such as pneumonia and bronchitis) in children younger than 18 months of age. • 200,000 to 1 million asthmatic children suffering increases in the number and severity of asthma attacks. Sources: American Cancer Society/ U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

WEB SITES

• Ohio: www.odh.state.oh.us • Cincinnati Health Department • Hamilton County General Health District • Northern Kentucky Health Department

"I think more and more restaurants are finding a demand for smoke-free environments," said Cincinnati Health Commissioner Malcolm Adcock.

Secondhand smoke is a Group A carcinogen, known to cause cancer in humans. The Environmental Protection Agency has linked secondhand smoke to lung cancer in adult nonsmokers and respiratory problems in children.

Cincinnati restaurants will receive a questionnaire from the Health Department by mid-January, Adcock said.

Dooley's Deli on Fourth Street in downtown Cincinnati went smoke-free 11 years ago. Owner Carl Perin said he made the decision because of business concerns.

Smokers were driving away the nonsmokers, he said.

"Everyone said if I went smoke-free that I'd go out of business," Perin said. "But actually, business has doubled."

Over lunch at Barleycorn's downtown, Carol Dedischew of Anderson Township said food quality drives her restaurant choices. Dedischew, who does not smoke, says she would pick restaurants where her friends who do smoke feel comfortable.

Attempts to compile a list of smoke-free restaurants in Greater Cincinnati have had varying degrees of success.

The Ohio Department of Health's Web site lists 287 in Hamilton County, most of them fast-food places. But the list was based on a survey in the late 1990s and only periodically gets updated.

The Northern Kentucky Independent District Health Department annually surveys restaurants and keeps an up-to-date list on its Web site. It has 100 smoke-free restaurants posted.

The surveys come when a movement to restrict smoking in public places has gained momentum in northwest Ohio. In August, Toledo passed a Clean Indoor Air Law, which aims to protect the health of workers and customers by banning smoking in most restaurants, bars and bowling alleys unless they have a separately ventilated smoking lounge. Bowling Green also has a smoking ban that covers most restaurants.

Nationally, five states - New York, California, Delaware, Connecticut and Maine - and about 250 municipalities have adopted ordinances prohibiting smoking in bars or restaurants. Cincinnati allows smoking only in designated areas of restaurants.

E-mail mleingang@enquirer.com