Health Risks for Non-Smokers

When certain states implemented their ban on smoking in public places, there were many disgruntled smokers. There were some who felt it was an inconvenience to step outside the restaurant or bar they were in so that they might enjoy their social cigarette. Unfortunately, what some of these smokers failed to realize was why this ban was initially created; they couldn't see the health risks their smoking might have on the nonsmokers around them.

Significance

• Also known as environmental tobacco smoke, secondhand smoke contains more than 4,000 chemicals, 50 of which are considered cancer-causing agents. These chemicals have made secondhand smoke the third leading cause of preventable death in the U.S., according to the Environmental Protection Agency. In addition, these chemicals are responsible for a myriad of health risks among nonsmokers.

Infants

• Secondhand smoke can cause sudden infant death syndrome, asthma and inner ear infections in infants. They are most vulnerable because they are unable to move away from the secondhand smoke.

Children

• In children who have asthma, secondhand smoke can cause an increase in their symptoms as well as increase the severity of the symptoms. In children who do not have asthma, secondhand smoke can increase their risk of developing it.

Cancer

• The surgeon general classified secondhand smoke as a cancer-causing agent, stating that inhalation of it by a nonsmoking adult can cause him to develop lung cancer. Each year, 3,000 lung cancer deaths among nonsmokers are attributed to secondhand smoke, according to the EPA.

Heart Disease

• A nonsmoker exposed to secondhand smoke can develop a buildup of plaque along the walls of the arteries, resulting in coronary heart disease. Sixty-two thousand deaths among nonsmokers are caused from this, according to the EPA.