Secondhand Smoke

Secondhand smoke is a combination of the smoke in the air from a burning cigarette and the smoke exhaled by a person smoking.

Publications Available

• Ordinances:
  • City of Colorado Springs Smoking Ordinance (87-42) [PDF Document]
   
• Smoke-Free Dining Guide [PDF Document] (or call 578-3265 for your free copy)
  • TEPP would like to thank GASP for collaborating on the Smoke-Free Dining Guide. For a complete listing of smoke-free restaurants throughout Colorado, please visit GASP's website at http://gaspforair.org
• Secondhand Smoke: Know the Facts [PDF Document]
• Endangering Others: Secondhand Smoke [PDF Document]

HEALTH EFFECTS:
Secondhand smoke is a cause of:

• Lung cancer
• Other cancers - laryngeal, esophageal, bladder, mouth cancer, etc.
• Heart disease
• Stroke
• Lung disease - such as chronic bronchitis and emphysema

CHEMICALS:
Secondhand smoke contains almost 5,000 chemicals. The following is a partial list of chemicals found in tobacco smoke:

• Ammonia - is used as floor and toilet cleaner
• Acetone - is used as nail polish remover
• Arsenic - is used to poison rodents
• Carbon Monoxide - is found in car exhaust fumes
• Cyanide - is used in the gas chamber
• Formaldehyde - is used to preserve biological specimens
• Methane - is a swamp gas
• Tar - is used to seal roofs
• Toluene - is an industrial solvent

ARE YOU AT RISK?

• One study found that 87.9 percent of children and adult non-smokers had detectable levels of nicotine in their systems, simply because they lived or worked with smokers.
• The most heavily exposed are food service workers - waiters, waitresses, cooks, bartenders, and counter help. Of these 5.5 million workers, 22 percent are teenagers.
• Food service workers were estimated to have a 50 percent increased risk of dying from lung cancer over the general population, which was attributed in part to their workplace exposure to secondhand smoke.
• The most heavily exposed restaurant workers breathe the equivalent of actively smoking 1.5 to 2 packs per day.
• Bar workers' exposure to secondhand smoke is 4 to 6 times higher than other workers.

REASONS TO GO SMOKE-FREE:

• A smoke-free workplace is good for the bottom line.
• It helps to create a safe, healthful workplace.
• Direct health care costs to the company may be reduced.
• Maintenance costs go down.
• Office equipment, carpets, and furniture last longer.
• The risk of fires is lower.

CHILDREN AT RISK: Children are especially vulnerable to the effects of secondhand smoke; there is double the risk for Sudden Infant Death Syndrome in households with a parent who smokes. Each year, secondhand smoke causes up to 2 million cases of chronic middle ear infection, 436,000 cases of bronchitis and 190,000 episodes of pneumonia in children under the age of 5. In Colorado, approximately 4,400 cases of asthma in children under 15 years of age can be attributed to exposure to tobacco smoke in the household each year.

WHAT YOU CAN DO:

• Don't let people smoke in your home. Smoking in even one room will pollute your entire house due to airflow.
• Post a polite sign on your front door - visitors appreciate knowing in advance that your home is a smoke-free zone.
• Remove all ashtrays.
• If you live with a smoker, chances are they feel badly enough about their habit and wish they could quit. Be gentle, but firm in your request that they smoke only outside.
• Don't let people smoke in your car. Even with an open window, it's not enough.
• Ask in advance about smoking policies and let all hotels, tours, ships, rental car agencies, etc. know your preferences. Always take the smoke-free options that are available.
• Avoid crowded, smoky restaurants, and eat in smoke-free restaurants. Use the El Paso County Smoke-Free Dining Guide for dining.
• When you are in public with your child, sit in non-smoking sections.
• If you are a smoker, contact the Tobacco Education and Prevention Partnership office for information on quitting.
• If there is a public place (for example: restaurant, workplace, or office building) that is not in compliance of the ordinance, contact the Environmental Health division of the El Paso County Department of Health and Environment at 578-3125.

Links:

• Smoke-free Environments Law Project
• GASP (Group to Alleviate Smoking Pollution)
• Americans For Non-Smokers' Rights