More than 1,000 non-smokers will die this year in Canada due to tobacco use -- over 300 lung cancer deaths⁵ and at least 700 deaths from coronary heart disease⁹ will be caused by second-hand smoke.

• Second-hand smoke is a combination of poisonous gases, liquids, and breathable particles that are harmful to our health.
• Second-hand smoke consists of mainstream smoke, the smoke inhaled and exhaled by the smoker, and sidestream smoke, the smoke released directly from the end of a burning cigarette.
• Second-hand smoke contains over 4,000 chemical compounds, 50 of which are associated with, or known to cause cancer. ¹
• Two thirds of the smoke from a burning cigarette is not inhaled by the smoker but enters into the surrounding environment. The contaminated air is inhaled by anyone in that area. ²
• The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has officially labelled second -hand smoke as a "class A" cancer-causing substance. ² Class A is considered the most dangerous of cancer agents and there is no known safe level of exposure.
• Second-hand smoke has twice as much nicotine and tar as the smoke that smokers inhale. It also has five times the carbon monoxide which decreases the amount of oxygen in our blood. ⁷

Facts

• Second-hand smoke causes disease and death in healthy non-smokers. ^{2, 4}
• Exposure for as little as 8 to 20 minutes causes physical reactions linked to heart and stroke disease: ⁸
  • The heart rate increases
  • The heart's oxygen supply decreases
  • Blood vessels constrict which increases blood pressure and makes the heart work harder.
• The health effects on children exposed to second-hand smoke include Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS) and breathing problems in children as young as 18 months of age. ¹
• Children exposed to second-hand smoke in their homes are more likely to suffer breathing problems such as asthma and damage to their lungs. ^{2, 4} Children are twice as likely to smoke if their parents are smokers.
• If you are a non-smoker, exposure to second-hand smoke increases your chance of lung cancer by 25%, heart disease by 10%, and cancer of the sinuses, brain, breast, uterine cervix, thyroid, as well as leukemia and lymphoma. ^{2, 4}
• Although only 3 in 10 people report being exposed to second-hand smoke, 9 in 10 people have detectable levels in their bodies. The test measures exposure that has occurred over the last 3 days. ³
• Second-hand smoke is a major source of indoor air pollution, and the greatest source of air particle pollution. ⁴
• The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency estimates that the risk of developing cancer from exposure to second-hand smoke is about 57 times greater than the total risk posed by all outdoor air contaminants regulated under U.S. environmental law. ⁴
• More than three times as many infants die from second-hand smoke-related Sudden Infant Death Syndrome as from child abuse or homicide. ⁶
  

Controls

• Increasing ventilation will dilute the smoke but will not make it safe, since there is no known safe level of exposure to cancer-causing agents. Restricting smokers to separate rooms will only help if these rooms have their own ventilation systems.
• Electronic air filters and air purifiers may remove some smoke particles from the air, but they cannot remove those that have settled on food, furnishings, skin and other surfaces. Their effect on the gaseous components of second-hand smoke is unknown.
• There is only one way to eliminate second-hand smoke from indoor air: remove the source.

References

1. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. The Health Consequences of Smoking: Chronic Obstructive Lung Disease. A report of the Surgeon General. Rockville, Maryland: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Public Health Service, Office on Smoking and Health, 1984.
2. U.S. Department of Health, Education and Welfare. Smoking and Health: A Report of the Surgeon General. Rockville, Maryland: U.S. Department of Health, Education and Welfare, Public Health Service, Office of the Assistant Secretary for Health, Office on Smoking and Health, 1979.
3. Hopkin, J. Genetics and lung disease [editorial]. Br Med J 1991;302:1222-1223.
4. Cunningham, Rob. Smoke & Mirrors - The Canadian Tobacco War. Ottawa: International Development Research Centre, 1996.
5. Makomaski-Illing, E.M. and M.J. Kaiserman. Mortality Attributable to Tobacco Use in Canada and its Regions. Chronic Diseases in Canada. 1999;20(3):111-117
6. DiFranza, J.R. and R.A. Lew. Effect of Maternal Cigarette Smoking on Pregnancy Complications and Sudden Infant Death Syndrome. Journal of Family Practice, Vol. 40, 1995, pp. 385-394.
7. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Report on Carcinogens - 9th Edition. Public Health Service, National Toxicology Program. Research Triangle Park, N.C. 2000.
8. Wells, J.A. Passive Smoking as a Cause of Heart Disease. Journal of the American College of Cardiology, Vol. 24, August 1994, pp. 546-554.
9. Margaret de Groh and Howard I Morrison, Environmental tobacco smoke and deaths from coronary heart disease in Canada, Chronic Diseases in Canada, Volume 23, Number 1, pp 13-16 (2002)