18 years
Does sitting next to a smoker (cigarette and hookah) affect me by any way (the smoke they release)? (I don't smoke)
Aug 7, 2014
Passive smoking means breathing in other people's tobacco smoke. Second-hand smoke is a danger to everyone, but children, pregnant women and the partners of people who smoke are most vulnerable. Passive smoking increases the risk of sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS or cot death), middle ear disease, asthma, respiratory illnesses, lung cancer and coronary heart disease.Exhaled smoke is called exhaled mainstream smoke. The smoke drifting from a lit cigarette is called sidestream smoke. The combination of mainstream and sidestream smoke is called second-hand smoke
A person who smokes heavily indoors causes a permanent low-lying smoke cloud that other householders have no choice but to breathe.
Compounds such as ammonia, sulphur and formaldehyde irritate the eyes, nose, throat and lungs. These compounds are especially harmful to people with respiratory conditions such as bronchitis or asthma. Exposure to second-hand smoke can either trigger or worsen symptoms.
RISKS FOR PASSIVE SMOKING ARE :
> increases the risk of heart disease. There is consistent evidence that people who do not smoke, who live in a smoky household, have higher risks of coronary heart disease than those who do not.
There is evidence that passive smoking can cause levels of antioxidant vitamins in the blood to reduce.
>Just 30 minutes of exposure to second-hand smoke can affect how your blood vessels regulate blood flow, to a similar degree to that seen in people who smoke.
>Long-term exposure to passive smoking may lead to the development of atherosclerosis (narrowing of the arteries).
>People who do not smoke who suffer long-term exposure to second-hand smoke have a 20 to 30 per cent higher risk of developing lung cancer.
> increase the risk of stroke, nasal sinus cancer, throat cancer, breast cancer, long- and short-term respiratory symptoms, loss of lung function, and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease among people who do not smoke.
TO REDUCE THE RISK of passive or second hand smoking suggestions include:
Make your home smoke-free.
-Make sure that visitors to your house smoke their cigarettes outdoors.
-Make your car smoke-free. The other occupants will still be exposed to tobacco smoke even if the windows are open.
-Don’t allow smoking in any enclosed space
-Try to avoid taking children to outdoor areas where people are smoking and you can’t easily move away, such as a café courtyard.
-Make sure that all people who look after your children provide a smoke-free environment.
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