Effects of secondhand smoke

By April Speck, Coordinator,

Clinton County Healthy Hometown Coalition

Secondhand smoke contains more than 7000 chemicals, hundreds of which are toxic and about 70 have been proven to cause cancer. There is no risk-free level of exposure to secondhand smoke. Secondhand smoke causes numerous health problems in infants and children, including severe asthma attacks, respiratory infections, ear infections, and sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS). Some of the health conditions caused by secondhand smoke in adults include heart disease and lung cancer.

• Exposure to secondhand smoke has immediate adverse effects on the cardiovascular system and can cause coronary heart disease.

• Secondhand smoke causes an estimated 46,000 premature deaths from heart disease each year in the United States among nonsmokers.

• Nonsmokers who are exposed to secondhand smoke at home or at work increase their risk of developing heart disease by 25–30percent.

• Secondhand smoke causes lung cancer in adults who themselves have never smoked.

• Secondhand smoke causes an estimated 3,400 lung cancer deaths among U.S. nonsmokers each year.

• SIDS (Sudden Infant Death Syndrome) is the sudden, unexplained, unexpected death of an infant in the first year of life. SIDS is the leading cause of death in otherwise healthy infants. Secondhand smoke increases the risk for SIDS.

• Studies show that older children whose parents smoke get sick more frequently. Their lungs grow at a slower pace than those of children who do not breathe secondhand smoke and they can contract bronchitis and pneumonia more often.

• Wheezing and coughing are more common in children who breathe secondhand smoke.

• Secondhand smoke can trigger an asthma attack in a child. Children with asthma who are around secondhand smoke have more severe and frequent asthma attacks, putting a child’s life in danger.

• Children whose parents smoke around them get more ear infections. They also have fluid in their ears more often and have to have more operations to insert ear tubes for drainage.

Recently, I completed a lesson on the dangers of secondhand smoke with Ms. Tyonia Sinclair’s ninth grade health class. Their assigned project was to create a drawing or a short paragraph on the topic “Why Secondhand Smoking is Harmful.”

Healthy Hometown Coalition events

1. CCHS students will begin teaching Take 10! Physical Education activities at ECC with all Kindergarten students.

2. The Nutrition/Food Expert tabletop is set for Tuesday, December 10th 1:00 pm at Clinton County Extension Office.

Follow Healthy Hometown Project on Twitter: @HealthyHomeKY , and on Facebook: Kentucky’s Healthy Hometown Initiative-Clinton County

Healthy Hometown is working toward a “healthy” Clinton County.