Passive smoking

Passive smoking is a direct result of people not smokers breathe smoke produced by smokers snuff both burning cigarette and the smoke exhaled.

In the smoke of snuff there are more than 4,000 chemicals, of which it is known that at least 250 are harmful and more than 50 carcinogens. In fact, the World Health Organization (WHO) has established that there is no safe level of exposure to smoke snuff and that the only way to protect yourself from its harmful effects on health is to create completely smoke-free environments. This is the reason why the current laws on the snuff ban smoking in enclosed public places.

Risks of passive smoking

Passive smoking causes more than 600,000 premature deaths per year worldwide due to different diseases:

• Lung cancer: the risk of suffering because of involuntary snuff smoke exposure was increased by 20% in women and 30% in men.
• Cardiovascular disease: passive smokers are 25-35% higher risk of myocardial infarction.
• Respiratory diseases: emphysema and pulmonary especially chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), as well as increased susceptibility to respiratory infections and bronchitis.
• Children and passive smoking

Since the implementation of smoke-free laws that ban smoking in enclosed public places, the problem of passive smoking plays a fundamental role in the family home. So much so, it is considered that nearly 40% of children are exposed to smoke snuff. In addition, Experts estimate that 31% of deaths caused by passive smoking are children.

This forced to snuff smoke exposure and facilitates children to become smokers, making them more prone to allergies, asthma, respiratory diseases, ear infections and other more serious as adults.

Passive smokers should also be considered for infants and fetuses whose mother is a smoker and have not quit smoking during pregnancy. Both nicotine and carbon monoxide, toxic substances from the mother inhales smoke snuff, affecting cross the placenta to the fetus.

Passive smoking can cause the unborn:  

• Children are born with underweight (around 200 grams less).
• More likely to suffer the syndrome of sudden infant death.
• An increased risk of a premature delivery or abortion occurs.
• More likely to develop allergies.