Why passive smoking is dangerous

Americans spend a great deal of time in cars, and if someone smokes there, the toxins can build up quickly — even when the windows are open or the air-conditioner is on. Again, this can be especially harmful to children.

In response to this fact, many expert medical groups have been working to encourage people to make their cars, as well as their homes, smoke-free. Some states and cities even have laws that ban smoking in the car if carrying passengers under a certain age or weight. And many facilities such as city buildings, malls, schools, colleges, and hospitals ban smoking on their grounds, including their parking lots.

There is no safe level of exposure to secondhand smoke SHS. Any exposure is harmful. The only way to fully protect people who don't smoke from SHS indoors is to prohibit all smoking in that indoor space or building. Separating those who smoke from those who don't, cleaning the air, and ventilating buildings cannot keep people who don't smoke from being exposed to SHS.

Many US local and state governments, and even federal governments in some other countries, have decided that protecting the health of employees and others in public places is of the utmost importance and have passed clean indoor air laws. Although the laws vary from place to place, they are becoming more common. Detailed information on smoking restrictions in each state is available from the American Lung Association.

Even if you smoke, you can decide to make your home and car smoke-free. This is the safest thing to do for your children, other family members, pets, and guests.

Research does show that particles from secondhand tobacco smoke can settle in dust and on surfaces and remain there long after the smoke is gone.

Some studies suggest the particles can last for months. Particles that settle out from tobacco smoke have been shown to combine with gases in the air to form cancer-causing compounds that settle onto surfaces. For instance, some of the carcinogens that are known to cause lung cancer have been found in dust samples taken from the homes of people who smoke. Secondhand smoke is a lethal cocktail of more than 4, irritants, toxins and cancer-causing substances.

Most secondhand smoke is invisible and odourless, so no matter how careful you think you're being, people around you still breathe in the harmful poisons.

Opening windows and doors or smoking in another room in the house doesn't protect people. Smoke can linger in the air for 2 to 3 hours after you've finished a cigarette, even with a window open. Also, even if you limit smoking to one room, the smoke will spread to the rest of the house where people will inhale it. Passive smoking is especially harmful for children as they have less well-developed airways, lungs and immune systems.

Children are particularly vulnerable in the family car where secondhand smoke can reach hazardous levels even with the windows open. To protect children, a new ban on smoking in cars and other vehicles carrying children was introduced in October It is now against the law to smoke in a private vehicle if there's a young person under 18 present. Read about the new law on smoking in private vehicles. Smoking e-cigarettes, also known as vaping, doesn't produce tobacco smoke so the risks of passive smoking with conventional cigarettes don't apply to e-cigs.

Research into this area is ongoing, but it seems that e-cigs release negligible amounts of nicotine into the atmosphere and the limited evidence available suggests that any risk from passive vaping to bystanders is small relative to tobacco cigarettes. Nicotine patches and chewing gums can help you stop smoking," says Dr Shishir Shetty, consultant - surgical oncology, Wockhardt Hospital, Vashi.

Giving up smoking works differently for different people. It depends on the number of cigarettes you smoke and the circumstances you smoke them under. If you light up when you're at a party or social event, the likelihood of you quitting is higher. Read: Smoking may cost you a leg: doctors Dr Lokeshwar says it's important for you to be aware of withdrawal symptoms like irritability, insomnia, constipation, tremors and weight gain.

However, stick to your resolve, make a pact with another smoker friend, join a support group or take up healthier hobbies such as exercise or going for a walk when you feel the urge, to give up for good. Get our Daily News Capsule Subscribe. Thank you for subscribing to our Daily News Capsule newsletter. Whatsapp Twitter Facebook Linkedin. Sign Up.