It has been more than 4 decades that smoking has been proven to cause lung cancer and other serious diseases. Around the same time, the negative belief has been confirmed that secondhand smoke can cause serious illness and premature death in both adults and children. Thanks to the United States Surgeon General's report "Health Consequences of Involuntary Exposure to Tobacco Smoke," it has reinforced our view on the ill effects of cigarettes for smokers as well as non-smokers.
The report came with key findings on the health risks of secondhand smoke, such as:
Secondhand smoke is a proven cause of lung cancer and heart disease in non-smokers, and sudden infant death syndrome, low birth weight, acute respiratory infections, ear infections and asthma attacks in infants and children. It is responsible for thousands of deaths each year in the United States.
There is no risk-free level of exposure to secondhand smoke.
Exposure to secondhand smoke causes substantial and immediate adverse effects on cardiovascular and respiratory health.
Secondhand smoke contains more than 50 carcinogens
Comprehensive smoke-free workplace policies are the only effective way to protect non-smokers from secondhand smoke. Other approaches, such as air ventilation systems, and smoking and non-smoking sections of rooms, are not effective and do not eliminate the risk.
Their conclusion is that the time has come to enact a comprehensive smoke-free law that applies to all workplaces and public places. The report reaches another very important statement: "Evidence from peer-reviewed studies shows that smoke-free policies and regulations do not have an adverse economic impact on the hospitality industry."
With this report, all the arguments and excuses for not taking action come to an end. Much research and hard economic data has shown that smoke-free laws do not harm sales or employment in restaurants and bars. In fact, they have sometimes had positive reactions, such as what happened in New York City after the law went into effect, business receipts for bars and restaurants increased, their employment increased, and the number of liquor licenses increased. . This happened despite the fact that most establishments followed the law, and the majority of New Yorkers supported the law.
Another positive result is that the smoke-free laws resulted in savings of money. According to statistics from the Society of Actuaries in the United States, secondhand smoke resulted in US$10 billion per year in health care bills, lost wages and costs.
All over the world, there is a concerted effort by various government agencies to legislate, mainly because smoke-free laws protect the health of the general public without harming the business sector. Even the corporate world has joined the bandwagon by maintaining smoke-free workplaces and providing a designated area for smoking. Some countries, states, provinces, territories, and districts have banned outright smoking inside restaurants and bars.
Passive smoking is a major but preventable cause of death. Since smoking harms more people than just smokers, there is a need to uphold smoke-free laws to protect the right to breathe clean air at all times.
Passive smoking is a major but preventable cause of death. Since smoking harms more people than just smokers, there is a need to uphold smoke-free laws to protect the right to breathe clean air at all times.
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