FLATS

Did you know that Thousand Hills State Park is a 7 mile drive from downtown Kirksville, but merely a 4 mile bike ride?  FLATS, or the Forest Lake Area Trail System is working to make this 4 mile bike ride a possibility. FLATS is dedicated to the use, development, promotion, and maintenance of trails in Adair county.  The first phase of the trail will begin construction in the spring of 2012; this phase will connect the marina to the petroglyph site, which is roughly 6/10ths of a mile stretch.  The second phase is to connect phase 1 to the north campground. And lastly, the third phase, which will take place in several stages, will be connecting the park trail to a currently existing Kirksville bike route. 

            Funding sources are from business or individual donations, grants, foundations, and state or government agencies.  No tax dollars are going towards the development of this trail.  $100,000 has already been donated to FLATS by the Recreational Trails Program which is funded by the Federal Highway Administration; fifty-seven percent of the phase 1 costs were covered by the Recreational Trails Program.

The trail will be constructed out of concrete, which has a longer lifespan and maintenance cost than gravel or asphalt.    The FLATS trail will be within ADA, Americans with Disabilities Act, standards, so anyone with any disability is able to access and use the trail.  FLATS is committed to trail maintenance so that the trail can remain as useful to Kirksville residents as anticipated. 

            FLATS is pursuing this project because of the positive impact it will make on the community.  “Before a trail is built residents often express concern about property values, safety, and liability. Once trails are built residents report that trails have clear positive effects on their neighbors, friends, and families. Trails users can make neighborhoods safer, serving as an informal neighborhood patrol, and trails both raise property values and decrease selling time for houses.”  In Columbia, MO where a similar trail was paved, “93% of nearby felt the trail would make their home easier to sell or have no effect.”  “The value of a home increases by $6.77 for every foot of decrease in the distance to the nearest trailhead.”   Concerning safety and crime rates, according to the City of Columbia, “homes bordering the trail actually had lower rates of burglary and vandalism that the neighborhood average.” Lastly, “legislation protects adjacent property owners from liability from trail users.”

Consider the immense environmental impact the trail will have when individuals are walking, biking, running, or rollerblading to Thousand Hills state park instead of driving.  Also, walking, biking, running, and rollerblading are great ways to exercise.  According to the World Health Organization, physical inactivity is second only to tobacco smoking as a health risk in developed countries, and this is associated with tens of billions of healthcare costs.  The WHO's report suggests that increasing physical activity is a public health 'best buy', and that cycling is a 'highly suitable activity' for this purpose.  It has been estimated that, on average, approximately 20 life-years are gained from the health benefits of road bicycling for every life-year lost through injury.  Cycling is especially helpful for those with arthritis of the lower limbs who are unable to pursue sports that cause impact to the knees and other joints. Since cycling can be used for the practical purpose of transportation, there can be less need for self-discipline to exercise.

City of Columbia. (2007). Trail Information for Property Owners. Retrieved 2011, from Go Columbia MO: http://www.gocolumbiamo.com/ParksandRec/Trails/trail_brochure.php

FLATS. (2011). Retrieved 2011, from FLATS - Forest Lake Area Trail System: http://www.kvflats.org/

Mayo Clinic Staff. (2010, December 18). Walking: Trim your waistline, improve your health. Retrieved 2011, from Mayo Clinic: http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/walking/HQ01612

Racioppi, F., Dora, C., Krech, R., & Von Ehrenstein, O. (2002). A Physically Active Life Through Everyday Transport. Copenhagen: World Health Organization.

Loraine Feldmeier

Suicide Prevention

Suicide Prevention

            Suicide is a tragic public health problem that negatively affects millions of Americans every year.  It is the tenth leading cause of death in the United States. The good news is it is preventable if the warning signs are recognized.  It is important for the entire public, but especially health care providers and educators, to be able to recognize the warning signs of an impending suicide attempt (NIMH 2010).

            The path to someone choosing to attempt suicide can be complicated and it is different for every person.  Common reasons for wanting to commit suicide include too much stress, bullying, financial problems, and extreme depression, or a combination of the above.  These stressors can exacerbate and trigger warning signs of a suicide attempt (QPR 2007).

            These warning signs are where a person known as a “gatekeeper” should take notice and then take action.  A gatekeeper is someone who regularly comes in contact with an individual and knows them well. For example, a guidance counselor or teacher would be the gatekeeper for a population of students, or a parent would be the gatekeeper for their kids.  If they notice something wrong or a student/child behaving differently than normal then they know it is time to take preventative steps to reduce the chance of a person committing or attempting suicide (QPR 2007).

            Common warning signs of a possible suicide attempt include: a loss of interest in things they used to enjoy, appearing to feel hopeless, writing about death or dying, talking about death, and mentioning suicide even in passing.  A gatekeeper should easily be able to recognize these kinds of changes in a person’s behavior (NIMH 2010).  

            In addition to the above warning signs, a person contemplating suicide may increase their alcohol or drug use.  Alcohol abuse especially needs to be dealt with in a swift manor as it increases feelings of depression and hopelessness, which can lead to an individual attempting suicide sooner than they originally planned.  If a person is threatening suicide you must immediately remove their access to alcohol and other drugs (QPR 2007). 

            Removing a suicidal person’s access to means of killing themselves is also very important.  Firearms are the most dangerous item for an at risk individual to have access to.  It is the most commonly used method of committing suicide in the U.S (NIMH 2010).  Any dangerous weapons as well as medications and car keys should be removed from the person’s possession or locked up in a safe.  This helps prevent an impulsive suicide decision when the individual is experiencing intense psychological pain.  If there is no easy access to a means of ending ones life, it prevents rash, split-second decisions that have permanent consequences (QPR 1993).

            Once a person is identified as being at risk for suicide, it is time to intervene.  There are several methods for doing this, but the most widely used and well known method is Question, Persuade, Refer (QPR for short).  Question refers to openly asking a person if the suicide warning signs they are showing should be of concern to the people who care about them.  This single handedly opens the door to more dialogue, which may defuse the situation and lead to a sense of hope for the at risk individual. Persuade is when you encourage the person to seek professional help.  If persuading doesn’t work, then it is time to refer the individual to a professional.  If the individual is a minor or adolescent it is important to contact their parents, minister, teacher, or counselor and alert them to the situation (QPR 2007).

            Suicide hotlines are a method of suicide prevention available 24 hours a day, seven days a week.  A simple phone call to one of these crisis lines gives you access to a counselor who can provide confidential help.  This kind of help may be all it takes to immediately defuse a potentially deadly situation.  People who are thinking about attempting suicide as well as those who are seeking advice or help for a family member or friend thinking about suicide are encouraged to call for help whenever the need arises. 

            It has been determined that adolescents who identify as Lesbian, Gay, Bi, Transgender, or Questioning (LGBTQ) are at an increased risk of suicide.  They are often subjected to more bullying while at school, and may not feel accepted in social groups.  This can lead to severe depression and eventually a suicide attempt if the warning signs are not identified. 

It is vital for the gatekeepers (counselors, teachers, and nurses) at high schools (as well as the parents) to have training to be aware of the warning signs of a bullied teen.  These warning signs include a loss of interest in or fear of going to school, appearing anxious when asked about school, few or no friends, problems sleeping, and coming home from school with unexplained scrapes or bruises (Bullying Statistics 2009).

            It is estimated that about half of all children will be bullied at some time while they are in school.  Around ten percent of children suffer from repeated bullying.  That is quite a large number of children being subjected to unnecessary emotional and physical distress.  Teaching your children how to avoid bullies, and tactics to deal with bullying situations will give them necessary tools to circumvent the whole problem.  However, if a bully is still a problem for the child, it’s time to talk to the child’s teacher, counselor, and principal to get the problem resolved (Bullying Statistics 2009).

            Suicide is not an easy topic to talk about, but knowing how to recognize warning signs and what to do to if a suicide attempt is imminent can help you save a life. Taking the time to learn prevention techniques is an invaluable asset that could just be the most important knowledge you ever gain.

           

           

           

Works Cited

U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, National Suicide Prevention Lifeline. (2006). After an attempt: A guide for taking care of your family member after treatment in the emergency 

U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, National Suicide Prevention Lifeline. (2006). After an attempt: A guide for medical providers in the emergency department taking care of suicide 

Quinnett, Ph.D., Paul. (1993). The Tender Leaves of Hope [Brochure]. United States of America: QPR

Quinnett, Ph.D., P. (2007). Qpr gatekeeper training for suicide prevention the model, rationale and theory. Retrieved from http://www.qprinstitute.com/pdfs/QPR Theory 

Bullying statistics. (2009). Retrieved from http://www.bullyingstatistics.org/

Brian Strode

Heart Health in Adair County

           A man wakes up early one morning to go about his daily routine: eat breakfast at the local diner, do some yard work, and visit old friends and acquaintances in the various near-by hospitals and nursing homes.  When he arrives at the diner the same inviting smells and friendly faces greet him as he walks in.  However, today is not like other days: the man has been suffering from a persistent pain in his chest and before his eggs and bacon are served he’s collapsed on the floor of the diner.  By the time EMS are able to arrive and provide treatment it’s too late, and the old man is beyond help.  He dies before reaching the hospital.  The yard is left unclipped and his friends are left wondering why he hasn’t stopped by for a visit today, like he does every day.

            The man in this story was killed by a disease that is spreading across America, killing thousands of friends and loved ones each year.  It isn’t a virus or cancer, but a disease more subtle and elusive and the number one cause of death in America: it is heart disease.  Heart disease is defined as a build-up of plaque in the heart that leads to lack of blood flow and ultimately heart failure (AHA, 2011). 

            There are many risk factors to heart disease, including smoking, high cholesterol, high blood pressure, physical inactivity, obesity, and diabetes mellitus.  A person with any or all of these risk factors is at risk for heart disease, and because the risks factors are so numerous, it is unsurprising why this illness is the number one killer in America (2011).

            Just like in the rest of the United States, heart disease is a major problem for Adair County, Missouri:  25% of deaths in the county are related to heart disease.  Most of the risk factors for heart disease are very present in the area as well.  30.8% of Adair county residents suffer from high blood pressure, 41.4% of residents over the age of 35 are diagnosed with high cholesterol, 35% are obese, 19% smoke, and the rate of inactivity is 25% (MDHSS 2007). 

            With the risks and prevalence of heart disease so high, it is important for Adair County to be prepared to handle any heart-related emergencies that might occur, such as cardiac arrest.  Cardiac arrest is a syndrome where an individual’s heart stops beating and can happen to anyone—children, adults, elderly, athletes—at anytime with little or no prior warning signs.  If  the heart is not beating, it is not pumping blood; if blood flow is not restored immediately, a victim can suffer permanent brain damage or die.  Using defibrillation is the only effective way to resuscitate a victim whose heart has stopped. Automated External Defibrillators (AEDs) send an electrical shock to a malfunctioning heart in order to jolt the heart back to life.  Once installed, the devices are easy to access and can be used by any person, whether they are experienced in life’s-saving techniques or not.  The chance of a victim surviving sudden cardiac arrest diminishes 7-10% for every minute a victim goes without immediate CPR or defibrillation and in 10 short minutes, reviving a victim that has received no immediate care is rarely successful.  For this reason, only 5% of individuals who suffer from sudden cardiac arrest survive (WebMD, 2008).  Chances of surviving could be increased as much as 60% if an AED is used in a timely fashion (OSHA, 2011).

            Many places around the world have taken the initiative to supply their communities with AEDs.  From 1999-2002, 475 AEDs were placed around Seattle, WA and hundreds of people were trained to use the devices.  As a result, 50 cases of sudden cardiac arrest were treated before EMS arrived and half of the victims involved in those cases survived until hospital discharge (Culley, Rea, Murray, Welles, Fahrenbruch, Ulsufka, Eisenberg, Copass, 2004).  In the Piacenza region of Italy, 39 AEDs were placed around the community and 1,285 lay volunteers were trained to use the AEDs.  As a result, the survival rate from sudden cardiac arrest tripled from 3.3%-10.5%  (Capucci, Aschieri, Piepoli, Bardy, Iconomu, Arvedi, 2002). 

Just as Seattle and Piacenza has done, the Northeast Missouri Heart Health Corporation has made it their mission to supply businesses around the Kirksville area with AEDs.  The initiative is a result of the loss of Kirksville resident Peggy Rynerson, who passed away on April 9, 2009.  Peggy suffered from sudden cardiac arrest, and if an AED had been near by, she might have been saved.

With the prevalence of heart disease so high in Adair County and sudden cardiac arrest being so unpredictable, disaster could strike at any time.  If the Kirksville is community is more prepared to handle these instances if and when they occur, more people like Peggy could be saved, less breakfast dates missed, and fewer friends left waiting for a visit from a friendly face.

Sources

(2011).  American Heart Association. Understand Your Risk of Heart Attack. Retrieved from: http://www.heart.org/HEARTORG/Conditions/ HeartAttack/ UnderstandYourRiskofHeartAttack/Understand-Your-Risk-of-Heart Attack_UCM_002040_ Article.jsp

(2009). Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services. Heart Disease Profile for Adair County. Retrieved from: http://health.mo.gov/data/mica/ASPsHeartDisease/

header.php?cnty=001

(2011). United States Department of Labor, Occupational Safety and Health Administration. Automated external defibrillators.  Retrieved from: http://www.osha.gov/SLTC/aed/index.html

Culley, Rea, Murray, Welles, Fahrenbruch, Ulsufka, Eisenberg, Copass.  (2004).  American Heart Association. Public Access Defibrillation in Out-of-Hospital Cardiac Arrest.  Retrieved from: http://circ.ahajournals.org/content/109/

15/1859.abstract?sid=70441a91-4e37-41cc-81b6-5f31b355c29a

Capucci, Aschieri, Piepoli, Bardy, Iconomu, Arvedi. (2002). American Heart Association. Tripling Survival from Sudden Cardiac Arrest Via Early Defibrillation Without Tradition Education in Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation.  Retrieved from: http://circ.ahajournals.org/content/

106/9/1065.abstract

Youth Tobacco Use and How to Combat It

According to the CDC, tobacco use is the leading preventable cause of death in the United States. Each year, roughly 443,000 deaths in the United States can be attributed to smoking cigarettes. So the question here is why do people start smoking or chewing tobacco when they know it is bad for them?  For the older population, a lot of them did not know that tobacco was harmful to them when they started to smoke or chew. They grew up in a time where smoking or chewing tobacco was widely accepted, and promoted heavily. It was not until they were heavily addicted to smoking or chewing that they found out how bad tobacco use really is. So that is one explanation as to why the older population in the United States smokes, but it does not explain why today, an estimated 850 youth start smoking cigarettes on a daily basis everyday.

In 2009, 17.2% of high school students and 5.2% of middle school students were current cigarette smokers. On an average day in the United States, 3,450 people between the ages of 12 and 17 smoke a cigarette for the first time. Why is this happening? And how is this happening? There are a lot of factors associated with youth tobacco use. Low self-esteem and low academic achievement are common signs seen with youth tobacco users. When a child has low self-esteem, they will look for ways to raise it, and often do not pick the best ways of going about raising it. Instead of choosing a positive way to raise their self-esteem, an example being achieving better grades in school, they go for the negative option, such as starting to smoke or chew tobacco.

Parents and socioeconomic status are other big factors that contribute to youth tobacco use. Parents that smoke will often have children that smoke. Children learn from watching others and then repeating what others do. If children see their parents smoking or chewing, they are more likely to grow up thinking tobacco use is normal and fine because their parents use tobacco and they are normal and fine. This “normal and fine” outlook about tobacco use will make children want to try tobacco products more because in their mind they are thinking “What harm could come from trying it?” Children can also more easily get their hands on tobacco products when their parents smoke or chew. All they have to do is take cigarettes or chew from their parent's stash.

Socioeconomic status is a big risk factor because it is usually correlated with levels of education. Typically, the less educated you are, the lower your socioeconomic status is. People with lower socioeconomic statuses tend to start smoking or chewing tobacco more so than people with high socioeconomic statuses because they have not had that continuing education about the effects of tobacco use. So, when people with low socioeconomic statuses have children, they do not educate their children about tobacco use in the most efficient way because they themselves are not as educated on the topic. What happens then is that these children will more than likely start smoking or chewing and the vicious cycle will continue.

So, how can we put a stop to youth tobacco use? For starters, DO NOT smoke or chew around children. Setting a good example for children is key to helping them be successful and healthy in life.  Also, by not having tobacco products around children, you make it a lot harder for them to get their hands on cigarettes or chew and try it out.

Tobacco education programs in schools are also beneficial in helping keep youth from using tobacco. The more education they have on tobacco, the more likely they will resist tobacco when they are confronted with it in the future. Better decisions can be made about tobacco when you all the information on it. By keeping children from starting to smoke or chew, we can break the cycle and create a healthier nation.

Rachel Van Cleave

Youth and tobacoo use. (2011, July 11). Retrieved from http://www.cdc.gov/tobacco/data_statistics/fact_sheets/youth_data/tobacco_use/index.htm

Lifeline Pregnancy help clinic

Teen Pregnancy has become a big problem in America.  There are so many tough issues surrounding the problem of teen pregnancy.  Teen pregnancy is a problem because teenagers are too young to take care of a child adequately.  They are usually unmarried and have no mate to help them take care of the child.  Sometimes, if the teen does take the child to term, her parents have a large role in helping to raise the child.  There is some good news however because teen pregnancy rates have been declining since 2009.  In dealing with teen pregnancy, health educators seek to prevent teen pregnancy, while also offering support to those who have already become pregnant.  

Teen Pregnancy prevention is important because of the effect teen pregnancy has on society.  It puts an incredible amount of stress on girls who are unable to take care of a baby.  That’s not the only problem.  In view of the nation’s present economic stress, teen pregnancy costs the United States about 7 billion dollars every year.    The two major forms of pregnancy prevention are abstinence and contraception.  Abstinence is the surest way to avoid teen pregnancy as contraceptives can occasionally fail.  Abstinence can be difficult for teenage girls because of social pressure to fit in with their society as well as their own natural desires urging them toward sexual activity.  Even though abstinence can be a difficult, it is still the best form of prevention.  Because teenagers lack self-control, it is important that health educators teach about the proper use of contraceptives in order to prevent teen pregnancies.  

The statistics on teen pregnancy seem to be getting better, although there is still a lot of work to be done.  Every year about 2 million women lose their baby before it is born.  These babies die because of miscarriages, complicated pregnancies, abortions, and still births.  Every year there are about 6 million pregnancies, so that means that about 30% of babies do not end up having a live birth. 

The next thing that health educators seek to do is to offer support to those pregnant mothers in need.  There are various pregnancy centers in communities whose mission is to help teen mothers.  In Kirksville, the pregnancy center is called Lifeline pregnancy center.  Lifeline offers many different services in order to help women in need.  These services include ultrasounds, pregnancy tests, counseling, educational classes, service referrals, baby supplies, clothes, spiritual support, and awareness events.  These are all free of charge and are a necessity for women who feel helpless and trapped.  Lifeline seeks to support women by listening to them and showing them compassion.  They seek to provide information to pregnant teens in order to help them make an informed decision.  They do not pass judgment on the teenage girls nor do they force them into making a decision about the life of their baby.  The best thing that lifeline can do is show love to those who come to them in need.  They also seek to offer parenting advice so that the teen mother does not feel completely lost if she chooses to raise the child herself.  The mission of Lifeline Pregnancy Center is essential to the community of Kirksville as well as to those girls who utilize their services.

 

Lifeline also seeks to provide information regarding abortions to those women in need because many people do not have all the facts.  Lifeline describes many of the various types of abortion procedures in detail because most women do not have an adequate knowledge of how abortion actually works.  Lifeline describes the pill which kills the embryo and then causes the body to expel it.  Another type of abortion is manual vacuum aspiration.  This procedure involves using a long thin needle with a suction attached to it causing the embryo to be sucked out.  Suction Curettage is the most common abortion procedure.  In this procedure, the doctor uses metal rods to pry open the cervix and then puts a suction tube into the uterus and sucks the fetus’s body apart.  The doctor then uses a curette to scrape the uterus so that there are no fetal remains left in the uterus after the procedure.  Another procedure is called dilation and evacuation.  In this procedure, a couple days before the abortion, the doctor uses many thin rods of seaweed to open the cervix, he then takes forceps and pulls the fetus’s body out.  The skull of the fetus is smashed in this procedure to make it easier to remove the rest of the body.  After the procedure, the doctor uses a curette to scrape the rest of the parts out.  The final procedure is called dilation and extraction but is more popularly known as partial birth abortion.  In this procedure, the doctor again uses the rods of seaweed to open the cervix a couple of days early.  Then the doctor uses forceps to grasp the fetus by its legs.  The doctor then delivers the fetus until everything is exposed except for its head.  Then the physician cuts open a hole at the base of the skull.  A suction tube is placed in the hole and the brain is sucked out.  This causes the skull to collapse down making it easier to extract the rest of the fetus.  These abortion descriptions are accurate, and lifeline hopes that they may discourage women from rushing into abortions.  Lifeline fights for a noble cause to help women in their struggles with pregnancy.  Lifeline is a beacon of hope to the pregnant teens around Kirksville.

Works Cited

"Abortion Education." Lifeline Pregancy Center. 13 Sep. 2011. .

"Home." Lifeline Pregnancy Center. 13 Sep. 2011. <. http://lifelineprc.com/index.html>.

"Statistics." American Pregnancy Association. 13 Sep. 2011. http://www.americanpregnancy.org/main/statistics.html.

"Teen Pregnancy Stats, Facts and Prevention." Family First Aid. 13 Sep. 2011. .

 Alexander Boerckel

Effects of Secondhand Smoke

Within secondhand smoke there are more than 7000 chemicals, hundreds of toxic substances and seventy of these chemicals that are known for causing cancer (Smoking & tobacco use).  The factors that affect which chemicals are found within secondhand smoke include: the type of tobacco, the way the tobacco is smoked, and the type of material the cigarettes and cigars are wrapped in.  For example, the amount of secondhand smoke emitted by one cigar is equal to the amount of smoke from a full pack of cigarettes (Secondhand smoke and cancer).  The Environmental Protective Agency (Health effects of exposure to secondhand smoke), the U.S. National Toxicology Program and the U.S. Surgeon General have classified secondhand smoke as a known human carcinogen.  As a result to secondhand smoke, around 3000 non-smokers die each year from cancer that was caused by secondhand smoke.  A non-smoker can be exposed to second hand smoke within home, work, public places, in vehicles and many other places.  When living with a smoker, a non-smoker will be twenty to thirty percent more likely to develop lung cancer from secondhand smoke (Secondhand smoke and cancer).

            Secondhand smoke not only puts a non-smoker at a higher risk for cancer, but it also increases the risk of other life threatening diseases.  In children, secondhand smoke can cause asthma.  This can occur in children that have never experience any asthma symptoms before exposure to secondhand smoke.  The smoke can trigger the child to have asthma attack and make the symptoms more severe (Health effects of exposure to secondhand smoke).  Children exposed to secondhand smoke also have a greater risk of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS).  In June of 2006 the U.S. Surgeon General released a major report that shows the casual relationship between SIDS and secondhand smoke (Health effects of exposure to secondhand smoke).   This also showed that the home is the main location where children are exposed to the most significant secondhand smoke.  In the National Survey on Environmental Management of Asthma and Children’s Exposure to Environmental Tobacco Smoke, they found that ninety percent of children experience secondhand smoke from their parents.  This also found that eleven percent of children six years and younger are exposed to ETS at home on a regular basis. (Regular basis is at least four times per week.) (Health effects of exposure to secondhand smoke).  Another issue with secondhand smoke in children is the increased risk of developing lower respiratory tract infections like pneumonia and bronchitis.  This mainly occurs in infants and children under the age of six years old.  Another risk for children being exposed to secondhand smoke is developing middle ear infections. Children are very vulnerable population because they are still developing physically, they have less control over their indoor environments and they have a higher respiration rate than adults.

            Adults are also adversely affected by secondhand smoke.  Other then lung cancer, secondhand smoke can lead to premature deaths in the adult population.  The smoke irritates the airways which effects a person’s heart and blood vessels.  Putting such a damper on the cardiovascular system can lead to heart disease or even heart attacks.  A person that is exposed to secondhand smoke at work or home increases their risk of heart disease by twenty-five to thirty percent.  Within the United States, ETS causes around 46,000 heart disease deaths annually (Smoking & tobacco use).   Chemicals that are found in sidestream smoke are able to enter a women’s breast tissue and enter the milk while pregnant.

            Not only are children and adults affected by secondhand smoke, but so are animals that are around tobacco smoke.  In a study by the Tufts College of Veterinary Medicine found that the rate of oral cancer within cats are much higher if they live in a home of a smoker.  The carcinogen elements from secondhand smoke stay on the fur of cats and because of hygiene habits of cats they lick these elements off of their fur coats.  Cats are also twice likely to develop cancer within their lymph nodes. Another animal affected by secondhand smoke is dogs.  Dogs are likely to develop cancers in their nose or sinus areas.  Dogs will longer noses are more susceptible because of the increase in surface area they are able to pick up more carcinogen elements from secondhand smoke (Thompson, 2007). 

            One way to fix health problems in humans and animals is to implement smoking bans within the communities.  This can be by banning smoking within business or public places.  One research survey that was conducted found that after implementing a smoking ban within a worksite, the number of people smoking decreased 5.7%.  Not only did the number of people smoking decrease, but the number of cigarettes being smoked daily dropped 2.67 cigarettes on average.  Having a worksite smoking ban has the greatest effect of decreasing the rates of smoking (Farrelly, Evans, Sfekas, 1999).  An average person spends most of the day at their place of employment.  This is logical because people engage in tobacco use for many reasons, which include: social factors, stress management etc.

References

Farrelly, M., Evans, W., & Sfekas, A. (1999, March 25). The impact of workplace smoking bans: results from a national survey. Retrieved from http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1763942/pdf/v008p00272.pdf

Health effects of exposure to secondhand smoke. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.epa.gov/smokefree/healtheffects.html

Secondhand smoke. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.cancer.org/Cancer/CancerCauses/TobaccoCancer/secondhand-smoke

Secondhand smoke and cancer. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.cancer.gov/cancertopics/factsheet/Tobacco/ETS

Smoking & tobacco use. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.cdc.gov/tobacco/data_statistics/fact_sheets/secondhand_smoke/general_facts/index.htm

Thompson, A, (2007, August 31). Secondhand smoke causes cancer in pets. Retrieved from http://www.livescience.com/7378-secondhand-smoke-cancer-pets.html