Frogger
God Complex
CCScandalus said:exactly. where were you when i was trying to explain this? you worded it much better than i did.
This calls for the Wikipedia warlocks.
Current scientific evidence shows that exposure to secondhand tobacco smoke causes death, disease and disability.[1][2][3][4]
Hm, let's go further into that.
^ WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control; First international treaty on public health, adopted by 192 countries and signed by 168. Its Article 8.1 states "Parties recognize that scientific evidence has unequivocally established that exposure to tobacco causes death, disease and disability."
^ U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. "The Health Consequences of Involuntary Exposure to Tobacco Smoke: A Report of the Surgeon General", 2006; One of the major conclusions of the Surgeon General Report is: "Secondhand smoke exposure causes disease and premature death in children and adults who do not smoke."
^ California Environmental Protection Agency: Air Resources Board, "Proposed Identification of Environmental Tobacco Smoke as a Toxic Air Contaminant" (June 24, 2005); on January 26, 2006, the Air Resources Board, following a lengthy review and public outreach process, determined ETS to be a Toxic Air Contaminant (TAC).
^ WHO International Agency for Research on Cancer "Tobacco Smoke and Involuntary Smoking" IARC Monographs on the Evaluation of Carcinogenic Risks to Humans, Vol. 83, 2002; the evaluation of the Monograph is: "There is sufficient evidence that involuntary smoking (exposure to secondhand or 'environmental' tobacco smoke) causes lung cancer in humans. [...] Involuntary smoking (exposure to secondhand or 'environmental' tobacco smoke) is carcinogenic to humans (Group 1)."
That's a lot of evidence to battle with.
Many former smokers, and those who are trying to quit prefer to not be around smoke as it can cause them to have cravings. Some people simply do not like the odor, which clings to hair, clothing, furniture, and rugs.
Many of these short-term effects terminate after the exposure ends. Repeated exposure, however, is believed to cause more serious long-term effects.
[edit] Epidemiological studies of passive smoking
Epidemiological studies show that non-smokers exposed to secondhand smoke are at risk for many of the health problems associated with direct smoking.
In 1992, the Journal of the American Medical Association published a review of the evidence available from epidemiological and other studies regarding the relationship between secondhand smoke and heart disease and estimated that passive smoking was responsible for 35,000 to 40,000 deaths per year in the United States in the early 1980s.[52] Some studies make the claim that non-smokers living with smokers have about a 25 per cent increase in risk of death from heart attack, are more likely to suffer a stroke, and can sometimes contract genital cancer. Some research, such as the Helena Study,[53] suggests that risks to nonsmokers may be even greater than this estimate. The Helena Study claims that exposure to secondhand smoke increases the risk of heart disease among non-smokers by as much as 60 percent.[54] Parents who smoke appear to be a risk factor for children and babies and are associated with low birth weight babies, sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS), bronchitis and pneumonia, and middle ear infections.[55]
In 2002, a group of 29 experts from 12 countries convened by the Monographs Programme of the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) of the World Health Organization (WHO) reviewed all significant published evidence related to tobacco smoking and cancer. It concluded:
These meta-analyses show that there is a statistically significant and consistent association between lung cancer risk in spouses of smokers and exposure to secondhand tobacco smoke from the spouse who smokes. The excess risk is of the order of 20% for women and 30% for men and remains after controlling for some potential sources of bias and confounding.[56][57]
Additionally, studies assessing passive smoking without looking at the partners of smokers have found that high overall exposure to passive smoking is associated with greater risks than partner smoking and is widespread in non-smokers.[58]
The National Asthma Council of Australia[59] cites studies showing that: Environmental tobacco smoke (ETS) is probably the most important indoor pollutant, especially around young children:
Smoking by either parent, particularly by the mother, increases the risk of asthma in children.
The outlook for early childhood asthma is less favourable in smoking households.
Children with asthma who are exposed to smoking in the home generally have more severe disease.
Many adults with asthma identify ETS as a trigger for their symptoms.
Doctor-diagnosed asthma is more common among non-smoking adults exposed to ETS than those not exposed. Among people with asthma, higher ETS exposure is associated with a greater risk of severe attacks.
In France passive smoking has been estimated to cause between 3000[60] and 5000 premature deaths per year, with the larger figure cited by Prime minister Dominique de Villepin during his announcement of a nationwide smoking ban: "That makes more than 13 deaths a day. It is an unacceptable reality in our country in terms of public health."[61]
[edit] Studies of passive smoking in animals
Experimental studies in which animals are exposed to tobacco smoke have produced results supporting the view that exposure to secondhand or 'environmental' tobacco smoke is carcinogenic. The International Agency for Research on Cancer expert group concluded that:
There is limited evidence in experimental animals for the carcinogenicity of mixtures of mainstream and sidestream tobacco smoke. There is sufficient evidence in experimental animals for the carcinogenicity of sidestream smoke condensates.[62]
A study conducted by the Tufts' School of Veterinary Medicine and the University of Massachusetts concluded that a cat living with a smoker is two times more likely to get feline lymphoma than one that is not. After five years living with a smoker, that rate increases to three times as likely. And, when there are two smokers in the home, the chances of getting feline lymphoma increases to four times as likely.[63]
A study by Colorado State University found a "weak relation" (odds ratio 1.6 CI = 0.7–3.7) for an increased risk of lung cancer among dogs esposed to environmental tobacco smoke in the owners household. No strong evidence or trend for further increase in risk was observed based on the number of smokers in the household, the number of cigarettes smoked, or the proportion of time the dog spent within the home. According to the study, the risk was restricted to breeds with short or medium length noses. The authors of this study called their findings "inconclusive".[64]
[edit] Risk level of passive smoking
The International Agency for Research on Cancer of the World Health Organization concluded in 2002 that:
There is sufficient evidence that involuntary smoking (exposure to secondhand or 'environmental' tobacco smoke) causes lung cancer in humans. Involuntary smoking (exposure to secondhand or 'environmental' tobacco smoke) is carcinogenic to humans (Group 1).[65]
Most experts believe that moderate, occasional exposure to secondhand smoke presents a small but measurable cancer risk to nonsmokers. The risk is considered more significant if non-smokers work in an environment where cigarette smoke is prevalent, although few studies bear this out.[66]
In May 2006, the United States Centers for Disease Control issued its first new study on secondhand smoke in 20 years. Surgeon General Richard Carmona summarized:
The health effects of secondhand smoke exposure are more pervasive than we previously thought. The scientific evidence is now indisputable: secondhand smoke is not a mere annoyance. It is a serious health hazard that can lead to disease and premature death in children and nonsmoking adults.
The study estimated that living or working in a place where smoking is permitted increases the non-smokers' risk of developing heart disease by 25–30% and lung cancer by 20–30%. The study finds that passive smoke also causes sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS), respiratory problems, ear infections, and asthma attacks in children.[67]
Ba dum ch.
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