Somebody else’s habit can destroy your health.
All that smoke that gets in your eyes is also getting in your airways and lungs, causing potentially fatal heart disease and cancer. It is also blamed for increased risk of sudden infant death syndrome, ear infections, colds, pneumonia, bronchitis, and more severe asthma. Researchers report that there is no safe level of exposure.
What is secondhand smoke?
Secondhand smoke is the combination of smoke given off a burning tobacco product and the smoke exhaled by a smoker. People can be exposed to secondhand smoke in homes, cars, the workplace, and public places, such as bars, restaurants, and leisure settings. It contains at least 250 harmful chemicals including hydrogen cyanide, carbon monoxide, and ammonia.
Laws protect your air.
Federal law bans smoking on most public transportation and in federally owned buildings. Many states and local governments have passed laws that ban smoking in public facilities, such as schools, hospitals, airports, bus terminals, parks, and beaches, as well as private workplaces, including restaurants and bars.
Health risks of secondhand smoke:
* Breast cancer
* Cancers of the nose, throat, and sinus cavity
* Leukemia
* Lymphoma
* Brain tumors in children
* Sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS)
* Ear infections
* Colds
* Pneumonia
* Bronchitis
* Severe Asthma
* Coughing and wheezing
Avoid thirdhand smoke, too!
Thirdhand smoke is the residue left from tobacco smoke that lingers on a person’s clothing, skin, hair, and on carpet, drapes, walls, and furniture. And it does this long after the tobacco use has stopped. Thirdhand smoke has the same harmful chemicals as secondhand smoke.
Even if you do not allow tobacco use in your home, avoid or limit being in homes and other places where smoking is allowed. And reserve nonsmoking hotel rooms and rental cars.
Action Step
Don’t let anyone, including your mate, smoke in your home. Never eat at restaurants that allow smoking or travel in a car with others who are smoking.
