Second Hand Smoke
Have you ever walked through a cloud of cigarette or vape smoke? If so, it may have affected your body more than you have realized. Did you know that secondhand smoke is considered a “Toxic Air Contaminant” and is in the same category as asbestos, cyanide, and arsenic?
Each year, secondhand smoke alone causes 7,300 lung cancer deaths, and nearly 34,000 premature deaths in the US. Many adults, and children feel and experience the impacts of secondhand smoke without even using a tobacco product. Unfortunately, even the smallest amount of exposure to secondhand smoke can interfere with the normal functioning of the heart, blood and vascular systems. Secondhand Smoke is known to damage the lining of the blood vessels and cause blood platelets to become stickier, and these changes can cause a heart attack.
Secondhand Smoke impacts children and infants in ways that can be detrimental or even deadly. Research shows secondhand smoke can cause SIDS (Sudden Infant Death Syndrome), as well as affect the baby’s brain in ways that interfere with their breathing. Children whose parents smoke are more likely to get sick more often, trigger asthma attacks, and have more ear infections than children whose parents do not smoke.
While secondhand smoke can be harmful or deadly, it can be easily prevented.
Here are a few ways you can be sure your child and yourself are safe from secondhand smoke:
• Do not allow anyone to smoke anywhere in or near your home
• Do not allow anyone to smoke in your car
• Make sure your children’s day care centers and schools are tobacco free
• Do not smoke when pregnant
• Do not smoke in the home or around the baby
Information takes from the Center of Disease Control and Prevention and Smokefree CA.
