Monday, October 29, 2012

Smoking Bans: Why They Aren’t Personal Attacks on Smokers


Smoking bans have become increasingly strict and extensive in recent years. It has even been proposed that the freedom to smoke in public will be eradicated in the not–too-distant future.  This has led to concern amongst smokers that these bans are personal attacks against them, with the intentions of strengthening the divide between smokers and non-smokers.  On the other hand, there has been significantly less emphasis directed towards the positive motives of the introduction of smoking bans, many of which are worth revisiting, including addressing the risks of second-hand and third-hand smoke. 

So just how harmful is involuntary smoke exposure, also known as secondhand-smoke? The Center for Disease Control and Prevention asked the Institute of Medicine to investigate the relationships between second-hand smoke and cardiovascular disease as well as the relationship between smoking bans and heart attacks. To call the results eye-opening would be an understatement:
·      Study results consistently indicate that exposure to secondhand smoke increases the risk of coronary heart disease by 25% - 30% (Institute of Medicine, 2009)
·      All of the publications show a decrease in the rate of heart attacks after a smoking ban was implemented, ranging from 6% to 47% depending on the study (Institute of Medicine, 2009) 


Third-hand smoke is the residue from second-hand smoke absorbed by interior surfaces such as floors, walls, furniture, and clothing.  Residents that combine with reactants in the air can produce dangerous products. Hugo Destaillats, a chemist at Berkeley Laboratory demonstrated that residual nicotine can react nitrous acid to form tobacco-specific nitrosamines or TSNAs, which are among the most potent cancer causing agents present in unburned tobacco and tobacco smoke. 

Gas appliances, which are widely prevalent in homes, are the main source of nitrous acid.  Also, smoking outdoors or opening windows when smoking in the car does not address the dangers of third-hand smoke, as the smoke residues sticks strongly to clothing and countless surfaces found in homes and cars (engines in cars emit nitrous acid, and some enters the cabin).  There are even indications that third-hand smoke poses the greatest risk to infants and toddlers.

Put aside the anti-smoking ideology for a moment, and imagine that no one is against the act of smoking.  What about non-smokers being exposed to second-hand smoke resulting in significantly increased risks of cardiovascular disease? What about the infants and toddlers being exposed to third-hand smoke and TSNAs? They are some of the reasons why smoking bans should be depicted as harm-reduction measures rather than personal attacks on smokers.

References:

Secondhand Smoke Exposure and Cardiovascular Effects: Making Sense of the Evidence (2009).  Washington: National Academy of Sciences, Institute of Medicine. Retrieved from  http://www.iom.edu/~/media/Files/Report%20Files/2009/Secondhand-Smoke-Exposure-and-Cardiovascular-Effects-Making-Sense-of-the-Evidence/Secondhand%20Smoke%20%20Report%20Brief%203.pdf

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/35318118/ns/health-addictions/t/third-hand-smoke-danger-babies-toddlers/

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