Second Hand Smoke - Do you Smoke
 

U.S. Surgeon General Richard H. Carmona today issued a comprehensive
scientific report which concludes that there is no risk-free level of
exposure to secondhand smoke. Nonsmokers exposed to secondhand smoke at
home or work increase their risk of developing heart disease by 25 to 30
percent and lung cancer by 20 to 30 percent. The finding is of major
public health concern due to the fact that nearly half of all nonsmoking
Americans are still regularly exposed to secondhand smoke.

The report, The Health Consequences of Involuntary Exposure to Tobacco
Smoke, finds that even brief secondhand smoke exposure can cause
immediate harm. The report says the only way to protect nonsmokers from
the dangerous chemicals in secondhand smoke is to eliminate smoking
indoors.

"The report is a crucial warning sign to nonsmokers and smokers alike,"
HHS Secretary Michael Leavitt said. ``Smoking can sicken and kill, and
even people who do not smoke can be harmed by smoke from those who do."

Secondhand smoke exposure can cause heart disease and lung cancer in
nonsmoking adults and is a known cause of sudden infant death syndrome
(SIDS), respiratory problems, ear infections, and asthma attacks in
infants and children, the report finds.

"The health effects of secondhand smoke exposure are more pervasive than
we previously thought," said Surgeon General Carmona, vice admiral of
the U.S. Public Health Service. "The scientific evidence is now
indisputable: secondhand smoke is not a mere annoyance. It is a
serious health hazard that can lead to disease and premature death in
children and nonsmoking adults."

Secondhand smoke contains more than 50 cancer-causing chemicals, and is
itself a known human carcinogen. Nonsmokers who are exposed to
secondhand smoke inhale many of the same toxins as smokers. Even brief
exposure to secondhand smoke has immediate adverse effects on the
cardiovascular system and increases risk for heart disease and lung
cancer, the report says. In addition, the report notes that because the
bodies of infants and children are still developing, they are especially
vulnerable to the poisons in secondhand smoke.

"The good news is that, unlike some public health hazards, secondhand
smoke exposure is easily prevented," Surgeon General Carmona said.
"Smoke-free indoor environments are proven, simple approaches that
prevent exposure and harm." The report finds that even the most
sophisticated ventilation systems cannot completely eliminate secondhand
smoke exposure and that only smoke-free environments afford full
protection.

Surgeon General Carmona noted that levels of cotinine -- a biological
marker for secondhand smoke exposure -- measured in nonsmokers have
fallen by 70 percent since the late 1980s, and the proportion of
nonsmokers with detectable cotinine levels has been halved from 88
percent in 1988-91 to 43 percent in 2001-02.

"Our progress over the past 20 years in clearing the air of tobacco
smoke is a major public health success story," Surgeon General Carmona
said. "We have averted many thousands of cases of disease and early
death and saved millions of dollars in health care costs." He
emphasized, however, that sustained efforts are required to protect the
more than 126 million Americans who continue to be regularly exposed to
secondhand smoke in the home, at work, and in enclosed public spaces.

To help communicate the report findings as widely as possible, the
Surgeon General unveiled an easy-to-read guide with practical
information on the dangers of secondhand smoke and steps people can take
to protect themselves.
Copies of The Health Consequences of Involuntary Exposure to Tobacco
Smoke: A Report of the Surgeon General and related materials are
available on the Surgeon General's Web site at www.surgeongeneral.gov.

Yeah and the bastards here where I work still smoke right outside of the hospital on IV fluids and oxygen... Don't ask me how that works!!! :mad: And my state has a law that all smokers must be 25 feet from a building outside even though it rains all the time... Asswipe smokers just put their butts up in the air furthering my lung cancer risk...

To answer the question: do I smoke?

Well, the most likely chance of me doing so is when I'm with a woman, and because I am so caught up in the intimacy of the act, I never get a chance to take a moment to look and see.




(:D)

Just saw a woman Saturday that was going through chemo for lung cancer. . . thanks to secondhand smoke. She was not a smoker. At least she didn't think she was.

I grew up in a housefull of smokers, and thought (and still do) that it was/is a disgusting habit.

My mother has smoked for as long as I can remember and I've always tried to get her to stop. She even wore the patch for a while.:(

This is why it makes me shake my head when folks give that tired excuse about how boring bars and some clubs would be if they banned smoking!!

No I do not smoke.

I find it funny how smoking can be banned inside a building and people stand right on the other side of the door and smoke like crazy...thus I (non-smoker) walk outside and can't breath due to the very thick cloud/curtain of smoke:mad:

That's why I can barely stand to go to bars and clubs that allow smoking. I come out of those places feeling saturated with smoke and wondering how much damage my lungs have just taken.

I too grew up in a houseful of smokers.
I quit a little over 10 years ago...I am the only one in my family who stopped smoking. I am grateful that I live 3000 miles from my family

Mr. 1228 grew up in a house of smokers but he has never smoked