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Fall 2007
Secondhand Smoke in Your HomeIt harms everyone and everything it touches
If someone asked you to consume butane, cyanide and arsenic and inhale carbon monoxide, you’d think he was kidding. But when you’re near a smoker, that’s exactly what you’re doing! “Secondhand smoke contains more than 4,000 chemicals, and 48 of them are known to cause cancer,” says Jeanne Fignar, policy and research coordinator of the Coalition for a Smoke- Free Valley. As numerous studies show, secondhand smoke has the same effect on nonsmokers as smokers. It causes heart disease, breathing disorders, and lung and other cancers. “Secondhand smoke kills 53,000 Americans every year, making it the third-leading cause of preventable death,” Fignar says. In your home, smoke stains walls and ceilings and gives clothes an unpleasant smell. “The smoker usually doesn’t realize it, but visitors sure do,” Fignar says. Opening the windows doesn’t help—invisible toxic particles in tobacco smoke stay in the room up to four hours after a cigarette is extinguished, and ventilation systems carry these particles from room to room. Read the box (below) to see how smoking impacts the whole family. In pregnant women, secondhand smoke deprives the fetus of oxygen. This leads to low birthweight, abnormal brain development and an increased risk for miscarriages and stillbirths. Babies are at a greater risk for sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS). Secondhand smoke weakens children’s lungs, making them prone to asthma, bronchitis and pneumonia. They also experience more middle ear infections and colds. Pets are more likely to develop cancer. Cats grooming themselves get mouth cancer from licking the toxic particles trapped in their fur. Dogs, especially long-nosed breeds, develop cancer in the nasal sinuses. Older adults exposed to secondhand smoke for 30+ years are 30 percent more likely to develop dementia, according to a recent study. “Breathing secondhand smoke is very dangerous to elderly people,” Fignar says. “Heart attack risk rises after just a half-hour of exposure because it causes arteries to stiffen and blood to thicken.” Want to Know More? For information on how Lehigh Valley Hospital’s Tobacco Treatment Program can help you quit, how you can encourage anti-smoking legislation, and a list of local smoke-free restaurants, call 610-402-CARE. Published from Healthy You Magazine, September-October 2007 This page last updated 2/12/08 04:08 PM
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