Dangers of Smoking in Public Places

Inhaling other people's cigarette smoke is generally referred to as passive smoking or secondhand smoke. According to a document from the British Parliamentary Office of Science and Technology, the risk of getting lung cancer and coronary heart disease increases by 25 percent when inhaling secondhand smoke. Smoking in public puts everyone, especially children, in danger and at risk of developing health problems.

Lung Cancer

• According to the 2006 U.S. Surgeon General's report on involuntary exposure to secondhand smoke, secondhand smoke increases a nonsmoker's risk of lung cancer by up to 30 percent, and according to the American Lung Association, more than half of those who have lung cancer will die within one year of acquiring the cancer. Many public places have sectioned-off sections for smokers, but the surgeon generals report states that it does not protect you from secondhand smoke, so it is still harmful.

Heart Disease

• An exposure of roughly 30 minutes to cigarette smoke exhaled by other people is considered enough to diminish the blood flow through the heart. The U.S. Surgeon General's report also states breathing in secondhand smoke in public can have immediate negative effects on breathing and over time will cause heart disease, have a heart attack and die early.

Miscarriage

• A study published in the September 2006 issue of the journal "Epidemiology" showed that 24 percent of the women in the study who suffered miscarriages were exposed to secondhand smoke, compared to 19 percent of the control group, according to an article on JoinTogether.org. The researchers also found that women who smoked were twice as likely to miscarry as nonsmokers.