Smoking products made with tobacco, such as cigarettes and cigars, remain the top reason that people die prematurely not only in the United States, but around the world, according to the American Lung Association and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Perhaps most disturbing of all, smoke from tobacco products is also potentially deadly to people who do not even use tobacco products if they are frequently around people who smoke.
Significance
Also called secondhand smoking, passive smoking occurs when a nonsmoker inhales the smoke produced as a person smokes a tobacco product nearby. The smoke produced during smoking is known as secondhand smoke or, less commonly, environmental tobacco smoke. It consists of both mainstream smoke that the smoker exhales after inhaling and sidestream smoke that emerges from the burning end of the cigarette. Unfortunately, secondhand smoke contains mostly sidestream smoke, which is more dangerous than the mainstream variety, according to the World Health Organization, or WHO.
Adults
Passive smoking can eventually lead to disease and early death in adults who do not smoke, according to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Over 4,000 chemicals--such as arsenic, formaldehyde and hydrogen cyanide--exist in secondhand smoke, and about 250 of them are toxic and capable of causing cancer. As a result, adult nonsmokers exposed to secondhand smoke are about 20 to 30 percent more likely to develop lung cancer and heart disease eventually, states the CDC.
Children
Passive smoking is even more dangerous to infants and children than adults because their bodies are still developing, according to Smokefree.gov. Mothers who smoke can or are exposed to secondhand smoke can harm their children and infants. Babies exposed to secondhand smoke in the womb or after birth are more likely to die due to SIDS, or sudden infant death syndrome. Moreover, fetuses exposed to secondhand smoke have a higher risk of being born too small or with weak lungs, which can increase their risk of developing major health problems later. Children exposed to secondhand smoke have higher rates of ear infections, diseases such as bronchitis and pneumonia, and lung conditions, which may include wheezing, coughing, breathlessness and severer, more frequent attacks if they have asthma.
Considerations
Opening a window or using an air conditioner, fan or ventilation does not get rid of secondhand smoke, according to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. The most effective way to avoid the many risks of passive smoking is to remain in environments that are entirely free of tobacco smoke in order to never inhale secondhand smoke. If that is not possible, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services suggests keeping your children away from smokers and places where they smoke, instructing your children to remain in smoke-free areas and making sure your home remains free of tobacco smoke, even if that requires forcing smokers to smoke outside.
Warning
Arguably the biggest problem related to passive smoking is the fact that even brief exposure to secondhand smoke is damaging to your health, The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services cautions that no risk-free amount of exposure to secondhand tobacco smoke exists. Moreover, the level of dangerous chemicals in secondhand smoke can exceed the level in the smoke that smokers inhale, which increases the risks of passive smoking.
References
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention: Secondhand Smoke
- Smokefree.gov: Secondhand Smoke
- U.S. Department of Health and Human Services: How to Protect Yourself and Your Loved Ones from Secondhand Smoke
- U.S. Department of Health and Human Services: What Is Secondhand Smoke?
- World Health Organization: Secondhand Smoking
