When Barbra Streisand crooned "Secondhand Rose," she lamented that, "It's no wonder that I feel abused. I never get a thing that ain't been used."
Exposure to secondhand smoke is even more abusive. When researchers analyzed a large-scale World Health Organization dataset on global smoking behavior, they discovered that for every 50 lifetime smokers, one nonsmoker dies from secondhand smoke exposure. Here at home, every 90 smokers are related to one death. Tighter U.S. restrictions on smoking in public mean it takes more folks to cause such harm.
Every year worldwide, smokers contribute to the 880,000 secondhand smoke-related deaths among individuals who do not smoke, including over 20,000 a year in the U.S.
And secondhand smoke pollution produces thirdhand smoke problems when the cloud permeates clothing, curtains, furniture and car interiors. A Yale study published in Science Advances found that sitting next to a smelly smoker in a theater can expose you to toxins that are equivalent to smoking 1-10 cigarettes.
Over time, thirdhand smoke exposure can trigger serious health problems, especially for youngsters, since the particles from thirdhand smoke are smaller, have multiple exposure routes and hang out longer on clothes and furniture. These kids' risk of going to an emergency department or urgent care center is three and a half times higher than kids who live in homes with no tobacco exposure.
So if you know someone who smokes or vapes, offer to help them breathe free - so you can too. You can find such a program at www.DoctorOz.com.
Distributed by King Features Syndicate, Inc.
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