Secondhand Smoke a Threat to All

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Secondhand Smoke a Threat to All, Surgeon General Warns

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It increases risk of heart disease, lung cancer and SIDS, report finds
By Amanda Gardner, HealthDay Reporter

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TUESDAY, June 27 (HealthDay News) -- No amount of secondhand smoke is safe.

And the only way to protect nonsmokers is through smoke-free environments. Separating smokers and nonsmokers within the same air space or relying on sophisticated ventilation systems just doesn't work.

That's the conclusion of a new U.S. Surgeon General's report issued Tuesday, which determined that nonsmokers who were exposed to secondhand smoke at home or work had a 25 percent to 30 percent increased risk of developing heart disease and a 20 percent to 30 percent increased risk for lung cancer.

"Science has proven that there is no risk-free level of exposure to secondhand smoke. Let me say that again: There is no safe level of exposure to secondhand smoke," Dr. Richard H. Carmona, U.S. Surgeon General, said in prepared remarks. "Only smoke-free environments effectively protect nonsmokers from secondhand smoke exposure in indoor spaces," he said.

Paul G. Billings, the American Lung Association's vice president of national policy and advocacy, added: "Essentially, the Surgeon General slammed the book on any scientific debate on secondhand smoke. The evidence is clear. Secondhand smoke is harmful and needs to be eliminated."

The sweeping report, The Health Consequences of Involuntary Exposure to Tobacco Smoke, was based on the latest research on the topic. The last comprehensive review of secondhand smoke by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services came out in 1986; that report concluded that secondhand smoke causes lung cancer in nonsmokers.

Some 126 million Americans are still exposed to secondhand smoke. The risks are well documented and include heart disease and lung cancer in nonsmoking adults as well as sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS), respiratory problems, ear infections and asthma attacks in infants and children. Slightly more than 20 percent of children are exposed to secondhand smoke at home.

"Breathing secondhand smoke for even a short time can damage cells and set the cancer process in motion," Carmona said. "Brief exposure can have immediate harmful effects on blood and blood vessels, potentially increasing the risk of a heart attack. Secondhand smoke exposure can quickly irritate the lungs, or trigger an asthma attack. For some people, these rapid effects can be life-threatening. People who already have heart disease or respiratory conditions are at especially high risk," he added.

According to the report, nearly half of all nonsmoking Americans are regularly exposed to secondhand smoke. In 2005, an estimated 3,000 adult nonsmokers died from lung cancer as a result of exposure to secondhand smoke, 46,000 from coronary heart disease and 430 newborns from SIDS.

Secondhand smoke contains more than 50 carcinogens and is a known human carcinogen, the report said.

The report also found that living with a smoker increases a nonsmoker's risk of lung cancer and heart disease by up to 30 percent. The evidence linking secondhand smoke and breast cancer, at this point, is only suggestive.

And while progress to control secondhand smoke has been made, it's not nearly enough, health officials said.

"The good news is that, unlike some public health hazards, secondhand smoke exposure is preventable," Carmona said. "A proven method exists for protecting nonsmokers from the health risks associated with secondhand smoke exposure: Avoiding places where secondhand smoke is present," he said.

According to the report, comprehensive smoking bans such as those in New York City and Boston have not hurt the hospitality industry. Also, restricting smoking in the workplace not only reduces secondhand smoke but also reduces active smoking.

Such statements are likely to fuel legislative efforts to ban smoking indoors.

"The report is going to provide an additional tool and some very robust conclusions to support smoke-free laws and ordinances across the country," Billings said. "If anything, the momentum and the pace of passing smoke-free air laws will increase as a result of the report," he said.

"Those are very powerful conclusions, because those are some of the arguments the foes of eliminating secondhand smoke try to use," Billings continued. "I think this report will rebut those kinds of claims once and for all," he added.

In the meantime, the Surgeon General has these tips on protecting yourself and your loved ones from the effects of secondhand smoke:

Make your home and car smoke-free.
Ask people not to smoke around you or your children.
Make sure that your children's day-care center or school is smoke-free.
Patronize restaurants and other businesses that are smoke-free.
Teach children to stay away from secondhand smoke.
Avoid secondhand smoke exposure especially if you or your children have respiratory conditions, if you have heart disease, or if you are pregnant.
More information

For more on protecting yourself, your family and your friends from secondhand smoke, visit Smoke Free Homes.

*bolded by me.....just thought it good to add a bit of emphasis here. i seem to recall a few threads all about this issue awhile back...and sure one can argue about private business owner's rights....but i fo one like the 'greater good' in this scenario. clearly, it is better for all not to be subjected to such in places open to the public, even privately owned.....for the workers and the patrons...i'ts not a matter of preference/convenience....but one of health.

duffy

no shit, sherlock.
i'm referring to the surgeon general.

damn these studies...its like, can they please get to something we don't know yet. i can't believe how everyone acts like we needs studies and stuff to show the obvious. reminds me of that old doctor adage, something like:

patient: "doctor, doctor! it hurts when I do that!"
doctor: "well don't DO that!"

:rolleyes:

RainDog

What about people who work in parking garages? Surely car exhaust in an enclosed space must be at least as bad.

nick1977

My state just passed an indoor workplace smoking ban to encompass restaurants and bars (unless the admit no one under the age of 21). I think this is a step in the right direction. They also made it against the law to smoke in a car if you have a child in the car.

However, my main concern is parents who smoke inside at home where children live.....that causes major health problems in the kids. I wish all parents who smoked would keep it outdoors.

know1

I know this is a no brainer, but I'd like to see more specifics on their study parameters.

MLC2006

if you get any of my secondhand smoke, you owe me $1.50, because cigarette prices are getting out of hand.

tybird

MLC2006 wrote:

if you get any of my secondhand smoke, you owe me $1.50, because cigarette prices are getting out of hand.

No, you owe $75.00 for ruining my oxygen............

eMMI

tybird wrote:

No, you owe $75.00 for ruining my oxygen............

yeh.

personally, I don't have a problem with people smoking next to me. but when I'm at a bar or some other space where people are smoking indoors it bothers me.

it hurts my eyes and head to see mothers with kids smoking inside the car (well allright, my mum smokes in the car but at least she blows the smoke outta the window, not everyone does that). :eek:

soulsinging

you know, this stuff freaks me out. like there's really no hope. even if i quit tomorrow, im going to walk past a smoker on break and catch cancer from them exhaling.

1970RR

If second-hand smoke were as bad as this report seems to say, why isnt everyone over the age of 30 showing signs of it? With the amount of smoking that occurred in years past, one would think there would be hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of easily identifiable cases of death/disease caused by second-hand smoke.

sonicreducer

cigarettes are far more worse for this country than george bush and funnel cakes combined,...

well, that is not true but i really can't stand the shit,...

soaks the pages

the only place i ever smoke is outside, and still i get people telling me not to smoke ("it's so bad for you!!" gee, is it really? thank you for informing me!), not to smoke around them, or those rude choking noises. and all i can think is that if i'm considerate enough to go outside to have my smoke as it is, you don't really have to stand next to me while i do so. people can be so rude :rolleyes:

sonicreducer

soaks the pages wrote:

the only place i ever smoke is outside, and still i get people telling me not to smoke ("it's so bad for you!!" gee, is it really? thank you for informing me!), not to smoke around them, or those rude choking noises. and all i can think is that if i'm considerate enough to go outside to have my smoke as it is, you don't really have to stand next to me while i do so. people can be so rude :rolleyes:

a lot of people disagree strongly with such an idiotic habit, regardless of where you do it. with so much evidence of this or that about how it affects you, it's selfish to continue smoking and it could be manipulated to "you don't care about your significant peoples"

one thing i have noticed though is that if someone doesn't want to quit, they won't. it doesn't matter what you tell them. but i haven't given up hope. i got my girlfriend to quit, so now im working on her parents.

MLC2006

eMMI wrote:

but when I'm at a bar or some other space where people are smoking indoors it bothers me.

lmao, bars were invented for people to smoke and drink in. you shouldn't go to a bar if it bothers you.

MLC2006

sonicreducer wrote:

a lot of people disagree strongly with such an idiotic habit, regardless of where you do it. with so much evidence of this or that about how it affects you, it's selfish to continue smoking and it could be manipulated to "you don't care about your significant peoples"

.

that's funny, because I think smoking is more responsible than letting a television raise your children, like most Americans do. or learning to play Madden instead of learning something like a musical instrument or something that can enrich your life. or how 80% of Americans are obese. or how most Americans couldn't even tell you what continent our military is currently fighting a war on. etc etc etc.

no one has room to bitch about smokers unless their own lives are completely spotfree.

soulsinging

sonicreducer wrote:

a lot of people disagree strongly with such an idiotic habit, regardless of where you do it. with so much evidence of this or that about how it affects you, it's selfish to continue smoking and it could be manipulated to "you don't care about your significant peoples"

one thing i have noticed though is that if someone doesn't want to quit, they won't. it doesn't matter what you tell them. but i haven't given up hope. i got my girlfriend to quit, so now im working on her parents.

ah, you're one of THOSE people. you folks annoy the piss out of me. you're like those godamn jehovah's witnesses running around trying to save people. do you warn someone every time they eat at mcd's that the burger will probly kill them? cos such people also obviously dont care about their significant others... how old are you? are you in any of those truth ads?

MLC2006

soulsinging wrote:

ah, you're one of THOSE people. you folks annoy the piss out of me. you're like those godamn jehovah's witnesses running around trying to save people. do you warn someone every time they eat at mcd's that the burger will probly kill them? cos such people also obviously dont care about their significant others... how old are you? are you in any of those truth ads?

that's right, because unless someone lives like a mountainman hermit, they don't have room to complain. if they drive motor vehicles that have helped destroy the earth, don't complain about smokers. if they use paper goods that were made from destroyed rainforest trees which in turn destroyed coral reefs, they have no room to complain about smokers. and like you said, being obese from stuff like fastfood will kill someone a lot quicker than cigarettes.

The Illinoisemakers

If people want to smoke go for it, I think it is a disgusting habit and a huge waste of money, but this is America so do whatever you want. There is one thing that does piss me off about smokers. It's those of you who smoke and then when your done throw your cig butt on the ground. I especailly hate it when I see people doing it as they're driving. I haven't had the opportunity yet but one of these days I'm going to see someone do it from their car, grab it and throw it back through their window. It will be a small personal victory for myself against all you douche bags that think the earth is your ash tray.

soaks the pages

sonicreducer wrote:

a lot of people disagree strongly with such an idiotic habit, regardless of where you do it. with so much evidence of this or that about how it affects you, it's selfish to continue smoking and it could be manipulated to "you don't care about your significant peoples"

one thing i have noticed though is that if someone doesn't want to quit, they won't. it doesn't matter what you tell them. but i haven't given up hope. i got my girlfriend to quit, so now im working on her parents.

i really don't care who thinks it is idiotic. i do plenty of things that are self-destructive, but the fact of the matter is that, regardless of my "significant people," my self is my own to destroy. and the criticism from you and others is unwelcome. you are not my doctor, thank you very much.

and if you try to get people to quit when they are not ready or do not want you to get them to quit, that should mean "back off." you don't really have any right to berate people who do smoke if they do so on their own property or outside, no more right than i have to take a megaphone and sit outside a mcdonald's and holler at people for "killing themselves" with big macs.

soaks the pages

soulsinging wrote:

ah, you're one of THOSE people. you folks annoy the piss out of me. you're like those godamn jehovah's witnesses running around trying to save people. do you warn someone every time they eat at mcd's that the burger will probly kill them? cos such people also obviously dont care about their significant others... how old are you? are you in any of those truth ads?

i didn't even read this post before i made my own. soulsinging was thinking the same thing i was

nick1977

1970RR wrote:

If second-hand smoke were as bad as this report seems to say, why isnt everyone over the age of 30 showing signs of it? With the amount of smoking that occurred in years past, one would think there would be hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of easily identifiable cases of death/disease caused by second-hand smoke.

Look at children who grew up in households where parents smoke inside....the proof is there.....increased asthma, health problems, etc.

Any habbit that costs the taxpayers millions of dollars every year is legitimate concern for the government. Smoking costs the taxpayers millions every year because Medicaid has to pick up the tab.