World Is Against Secondhand Smoking




Although smoking has been a habit of thousands of people centuries ago, passive, environmental or secondhand smoking became a matter of concern only four decades ago. Since 1970’s tobacco manufacturers started talking about harmful effects caused by involuntary inhalation of tobacco smoke.

Scientific researches claimed that passive smoking caused heart and lung diseases, various kinds of cancer and even death. Although some facts are not completely proven, many studies show that secondhand smoking is no “healthier” than direct smoking being the reason of all kind of health problems. The statistics says that 53,000 people die from passive smoking in the U.S. every year which makes it the third leading cause of preventable death in both adults and children.

There have been several authoritative organizations concluding that environmental smoking causes cancer: in 2004 International Agency for Research of Cancer stated: “Involuntary smoking (exposure to secondhand or “environmental” tobacco smoke) is carcinogenic to humans”. Various scientists from the USA, UK and Australia in 1986-2004 have come to the conclusion that passive smoking increases lung cancer risk. California Environmental Protection Agency announced in 2005 that secondhand smoking adds to the risk of breast cancer by 70%.

Tobacco is not only harmful for those who smoke cigarettes directly, sidestream smoke which comes from lighted tobacco product or is exhaled by a smoker contains 4000 chemicals, 69 of which have been determined as carcinogens (formaldehyde, lead, arsenic, benzene, polonium). Some studies even proved that such air is more filled up with bad particles than direct smoke inhaled by a smoker. No wonder why some studies showed passive smoking caused greater damage to human’s health than active one.

Adults do not realize that passive smoking brings great harm to children. It starts before a baby is born because a smoking mother poisons him or her which becomes a result of low birth weight or premature birth. Later involuntary inhalation of tobacco smoke results in sudden infant death syndrome, asthma, various lung infections including bronchiolitis and tuberculosis, development problems and learning difficulties.

In the 21st century authorities of many countries started working against passive smoking. On June 1, 2004, Norwegian government put a smoking ban on smoking in all the places that serve food and drink, such as restaurants, cafes, nightclubs, etc. The same law came to effect in Italy on January 10, 2005, in Sweden on June 1, 2005, and in Denmark on August 15, 2007. Similar rules were accepted by several other European countries and U.S.

Later they grew, putting even more restriction on smoking, for example, the laws prohibit smoking inside all public buildings. Hawaiian legislation went even further: it is illegal to smoke in any public place or within 20 feet of an entrance or ventilation shaft intake of the building. Although there have been established smoking rooms in many facilities, the laws do not allow smoking even there. There are also rules prohibiting smoking at any workplaces: this law is especially important since not all people work in the buildings: it is illegal to smoke in taxicabs, at the road reconstruction areas, etc.

Bill Murray

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Posted on May 6, 2009 
Filed Under Facts on Smoking, Smoking and Health

Comments

One Response to “World Is Against Secondhand Smoking”

  1. bitch on October 6th, 2009 3:38 am

    Later they grew, putting even more restriction on smoking, for example, the laws prohibit smoking inside all public buildings. Hawaiian legislation went even further: it is illegal to smoke in any public place or within 20 feet of an entrance or ventilation shaft intake of the building. Although there have been established smoking rooms in many facilities, the laws do not allow smoking even there. There are also rules prohibiting smoking at any workplaces: this law is especially important since not all people work in the buildings: it is illegal to smoke in taxicabs, at the road reconstruction areas, etc.

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