Someone who would never pick up a cigarette sitting next to someone smoking in a closed room will experience many of the same effects as the smoker. Called "second-hand smoke" or "environmental tobacco," breathing in smoke from someone smoking nearby has become a health and social issue.
Smoking is Unhealthy
According to Stop Smoking Today, cigarettes contain 4,000 chemical compounds, 40 of which are carcinogenic. The particulates of any smoke physically block the receptors in the lungs for oxygen. In addition, cigarette smoke contains carbon monoxide, which interferes with the transportation of oxygen in the body. Smoking causes people to suffocate--and not just the smoker.
Unfiltered
Most cigarettes have a filter. That filter reduces up to 90% of the tar that would otherwise be inhaled, according to e-Cigarettes National. They also filter out the particulates and many other harmful things. The person breathing the second-hand smoke has no such filter.
Long-Term Affects
Lung cancer risk increases 20 to 25 percent with prolonged exposure to second-hand smoke, according to Stop Smoking Today. The CDC has reported that smoking is a contributing cause in 1 in 5 deaths in the US. Smoking contributes to heart disease, stroke, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and lung cancer. In nearly 90 percent of lung cancer deaths, smoking is a factor.
Infants and Children
Children are smaller than adults, and they breathe faster. That means they are receiving more of the chemicals in smoke than an adult does. Lower respiratory tract infections, middle ear infections and asthma are all attributable to breathing second-hand smoke, according to the Environmental Protection Agency.
Legislative Clean Air
It's hard to believe that smoking was once allowed in places like movie theaters and airplanes. The first legislation limiting smoking may have been enacted in 1975 in the government buildings of Hawaii (see Reference 5). More and more cities are outlawing smoking. Starting in 2003, smoking was prohibited in restaurants in Hawaii. These decisions are made at the state level, and most states do now restrict smoking in public places for the protection of non-smokers and children.
