The Dangers of Secondhand Smoke

Smokers aren’t the only ones affected by smoking – anyone who is exposed to tobacco smoke may be harmed by its toxic chemical components.

Secondhand smoke (also called Environmental Tobacco Smoke, or ETS) is a mixture of the unfiltered smoke that comes from burning tobacco and the smoke exhaled by the smoker. Because smoke from a burning cigarette is unfiltered, it may contain twice the amount of tar and nicotine as the smoke that passes through the filter.

Nonsmokers who are exposed to secondhand smoke may have an increased risk of developing lung cancer, and children who are exposed to secondhand smoke may be more likely to develop asthma or respiratory tract infections. Secondhand smoke inhalation is responsible for thousands of lung cancer and cardiovascular disease deaths every year.

• An estimated 3,000 lung cancer deaths and more than 35,000 coronary heart disease deaths occur annually among adult nonsmokers in the United States as a result of exposure to secondhand smoke. 
• Each year, secondhand smoke is associated with an estimated 8,000–26,000 new asthma cases in children. Annually an estimated 150,000–300,000 new cases of bronchitis and pneumonia in children aged less than 18 months (7,500–15,000 of which will require hospitalization) are associated with secondhand smoke exposure in the United States.

For more information regarding secondhand smoke, please select on of the following Microsoft Word Documents:

What is Secondhand Smoke
Business Costs in Smoke
Economics of Smoke Free Workplace Policies
Health Disparities related to Secondhand Smoke
Smoke Free Workplaces
Surgeon General Major Conclusions
Clean Indoor Air Editorial