Get the Facts
Examine recent factoids about the health effects of secondhand smoke for insight into furthering the efforts of smoke-free environments in your community.
Factoids About Secondhand Smoke
People who smoke only 1-4 cigarettes per day are three times more likely to die from heart disease than non-smokers. (25)
Men who smoke only 1-4 cigarettes per day are three times more likely to die from lung cancer than non-smoking men. (25)
Women who smoke only 1-4 cigarettes per day are five times more likely to die from lung cancer than non-smoking women. (25)
Women are more likely than men to seek help in quitting tobacco use. (24)
Gay men and lesbians are twice as likely to be smokers than heterosexual men and women. (23)
Just one month after a smoke-free ordinance went into effect, bar workers reported fewer symptoms of breathing difficulty and throat irritation and showed better lung function. (22)
Just one month after a smoke-free ordinance went into effect, bar workers had lower levels of cotinine (a metabolite of nicotine) in their blood. (22)
Just one month after a smoke-free ordinance went into effect, bar workers with asthma had less airway inflammation and a better quality of life. (22)
Smoke-free restaurant ordinances have been shown to keep more youth (12-17 years) from starting to smoke (21).
Youth (12-17 years) in communities with smoke-free restaurant ordinances are half as likely to move from experimenting with smoking to becoming regular smokers (21).
Bar and restaurant workers who are nonsmokers and exposed to workplace secondhand smoke were 6 times more likely to have a detectable level of a tobacco-specific lung carcinogen and higher total levels of the carcinogen than those working in smoke-free environments (20).
Bar and restaurant workers who are nonsmokers and exposed to workplace secondhand smoke were 109 times more likely to have nicotine in their bodies than those working in smoke-free environments (20).
Each hour of exposure to secondhand smoke resulted in a 6% increase in the total levels of the tobacco-specific carcinogen (20).
Each hour of exposure to secondhand smoke resulted in a 33% increase in the levels of nicotine in their bodies (20).
A comprehensive smoke-free ordinance (including bars, clubs and restaurants) in Monroe County, Ind., reduced hospital admissions for heart attacks among non-smokers with no history of heart disease by 70% (19).
The tobacco industry's claim that secondhand smoke doesn't cause cardiovascular disease is based on studies with false design and misleading interpretation (18).
The tobacco industry's development of "reduced-harm" products is based on misleading interpretation of research and unproven theories about stress response to smoke (18).
Smoke-free workplaces encourage smokers to quit: prevalence of smoking drops by 3.8% (17).
Smoke-free workplaces encourage smokers to reduce consumption: each smoker smokes 3 fewer cigarettes per day (17).
The combined effects of smokers quitting and reducing use decrease total cigarette consumption by 29% after smoke-free workplaces are introduced (17).
Of Missouri households, 64% reported smoke-free homes in 2003, while 10 years earlier only 35% did (16).
The prevalence of smoke-free home rules [smoking is forbidden in the house] in Missouri was below the national median of 70% for 2003 (16).
Kentucky had the lowest prevalence of smoke-free home rules in 2003 (53%) and Utah had the highest – 89% (16).
Nearly half (47%) of students ages 13-15 worldwide who have never smoked are exposed to secondhand smoke at home (15).
Nearly half (48%) of students ages 13-15 worldwide who have never smoked are exposed to secondhand smoke at places other than the home (15).
Students who have never smoked but are exposed to secondhand smoke at home are 1.4 to 2 times more likely to start smoking than those not exposed (15).
Students who have never smoked but are exposed to secondhand smoke at places other than the home are 1.3 to 1.8 times more likely to start smoking than those not exposed (15).
Of the tobacco industry supported studies, 94% conclude a negative economic impact compared to none of the non-industry supported studies (14).
All of the studies concluding a negative impact were supported by the tobacco industry (14).
Studies concluding a negative economic impact of smoke-free policies are 20 times more likely to have not been subject to peer review (14).
Studies concluding a negative economic impact of smoke-free policies are 4 times more likely to use subjective measures (expectations vs. actual sales) than studies concluding no negative impact (14).
Of restaurants that have gone smoke free, 62% report greater customer satisfaction and fewer complaints (13).
Of restaurants that have gone smoke free, 52% report faster turnaround of tables (13).
Of restaurants that have gone smoke free, 33% report lower cleaning costs and 29% report lower costs from buying/maintaining ventilation systems (13).
Of restaurants that have gone smoke free, 24% report more customers (13).
Of restaurants that have gone smoke free, 10% report better health among staff (13).
Almost a third (30%) of Missourians with asthma who are current smokers and had visited a physician were not advised by health care professionals to quit smoking (12).
A quarter of Missourians with asthma work in places where at least some smoking is allowed or there is no official smoking policy (12).
A fifth of Missourians with asthma breathe secondhand smoke in their workplaces (12).
More than a third of Missourians with asthma (36%) are exposed to secondhand smoke in a vehicle (12).
More than one fifth (22%) of Missourians with asthma are exposed to daily secondhand smoke in their homes (12).
African-American children have higher levels of cotinine (metabolite of nicotine) in their blood and hair than Caucasian children for a similar level of secondhand smoke exposure (11).
Eighty-five percent of children ages 4-16 have a detectable level of cotinine (metabolite of nicotine) in their blood (10).
Children ages 4-6 with cotinine in their blood have a 5-time higher risk of asthma and wheezing apart from colds (10).
Children ages 4-16 with high cotinine are twice more likely to have wheezing apart from cold and to miss 6 or more days of school (10).
Living with a smoker increases the risk of lung cancer by 20-30% (9).
The majority of workers in the United States are now covered by smoke-free policies (9).
Smoke-free policies and regulations don't have an adverse economic impact on the hospitality industry (9).
Babies exposed to secondhand smoke are at higher risk for sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) and have slower lung growth (9).
The risk for bronchitis, pneumonia and croup in babies is greatest from smoking by the mother (9).
Homes and workplaces are the main locations for exposure to secondhand smoke. This exposure tends to be greater for people with lower income (9).
A mother's exposure to secondhand smoke during pregnancy results in a small reduction in birth weight of her baby (9).
Smoking by the parents causes cough, mucus in the respiratory system (phlegm), heavy breathing and breathlessness among school-age children (9).
A mother's smoking during pregnancy causes persistent lung problems for her baby across childhood (9).
Secondhand smoke causes premature death and disease in children and adults who don't smoke (9).
Separating smokers to nonsmokers, cleaning the air, and ventilating buildings can't eliminate exposures of nonsmokers to secondhand smoke. Only eliminating smoking in indoor spaces fully protects nonsmokers from secondhand smoke (9).
Secondhand smoke causes 3,000 deaths from lung cancer and up to 62,000 deaths from heart disease each year (8).
Infants and children exposed to secondhand smoke are more likely to develop pneumonia, bronchitis, asthma and middle ear infection (8).
For every eight smokers that die from tobacco-caused diseases, one nonsmoker will also die due to exposure to secondhand smoke (7).
A comprehensive clean indoor air ordinance can result in a 60% reduction in heart attacks (6).
Smoke from the burning end of the cigarette contains over 4,000 chemicals and 40 carcinogens including: formaldehyde, cyanide, arsenic, carbon monoxide, methane, & benzene. Not only the smoker, but anyone else nearby, inhales these chemicals (5).
Smoke-filled rooms can have up to 6 times the air pollution of a busy highway (4).
Waiters and waitresses have almost twice the risk of lung cancer due to involuntary exposure to secondhand smoke (3).
The same half hour of exposure to secondhand smoke can lead to changes in blood chemistry that are precursors to atherosclerosis (hardening of the arteries), which leads to heart attacks and strokes (2).
Even half an hour of secondhand smoke exposure causes heart damage similar to that of habitual smokers (1).