How to Prevent Passive Smoking

When smokers put cigarettes to their lips, light them and then inhale -- that is their choice. It is not your choice to have to inhale the secondhand smoke. Worse still, it is harmful to your health. There has been a link established between secondhand smoke and cancer. In many states, smoking is banned inside public places, but there are still a few that let people smoke at will. In those cases, it is up to you to prevent you and your family from coming into contact with tobacco smoke.

Instructions

• 1

  Instruct visitors that your home is a smoke-free area and ask them to smoke outside. Forbid anyone who works or stays in your house from smoking while you are not there. Remove any ashtrays as a deterrent.

• 2

  Educate your partner on the dangers of secondhand smoking if they insist on doing it in your home. Provide booklets or health leaflets about the dangers.

• 3

  Avoid areas where people smoke if you are in the home of a smoker.

• 4

  Give your employer copies of the EPA and NIOSH reports on the harmful effects of smoking if it is a problem in the workplace. Try working with labor organizations to help create controls over smoking and fair company policy to protect nonsmokers.

• 5

  Ask to be seated away from any smokers at work. If this is not possible, then politely ask them not to smoke around you, thanking them if they agree. If these measures fail, hang a "Thank You For Not Smoking" sign at your desk to help them get the hint.

• 6

  Always take the non-smoking option when you are out at a public place, like a restaurant. If the restaurant does not have separate sections, choose one that does or is smoke free. If you are seated near a smoker, ask to be moved.

• 7

  Inquire about the smoking policies of any hotels in which you might be staying. Do the same for any car rental companies you use, or tours or cruises you may go on.