Negative Health Consequences of Passive Smoking

Secondhand smoke, or environmental tobacco smoke, includes smoke from the burning cigarette, cigar, or pipe tip (side stream smoke) and the exhaled mainstream smoke. It contains at least 250 chemicals known to be toxic, including more than 50 that can cause cancer. Secondhand smoke is proven to cause detriment to adult and children’s health.

Effects of Secondhand smoke:
-increased risk of asthma
-lung cancer
-heart attack
-increased risk of pneumonia
-increased risk of bronchitis
-reduced lung function
-cold symptoms (cough, phlegm, wheeze, and breathlessness)
-ear infections
-SIDS (Sudden Infant Death Syndrome).

Recently associated with secondhand smoke are:
-cancer
-colic
-vitamin C deficiency
-learning/behavioral defects
-rhinitis
-tooth decay

The California Environmental Protection Agency estimates that secondhand smoke exposure causes about 3,400 lung cancer deaths and 22,700–69,600 heart disease deaths each year among adult nonsmokers in the United States (www.cdc.gov).

An estimate of the overall healthcare costs associated with secondhand smoke in Maine children is between 8 and 11.5 million per year (www.cdc.gov).

www.cdc.gov
www.phillipmorrisusa.com
www.surgeongeneral.gov

Reported by: Lauren Kenna