Environmental Tobacco Smoke

The only way to fully protect people from indoor secondhand smoke is to prohibit all smoking in buildings and indoor spaces. Creating a separate indoor area for smoking does not protect people who don’t smoke from being exposed. Purifying the air and ventilating buildings also doesn’t keep people from being exposed to secondhand smoke.

You should be especially concerned about exposure to secondhand smoke in these places:

At work

The workplace can be a major source of secondhand smoke exposure for adults. Many cities, states, and federal agencies have passed laws to make offices and public spaces smoke-free. But some places still allow employees and customers to smoke.

According to the Surgeon General, smoke-free workplace policies are the only way to prevent people from being exposed to secondhand smoke at work. These restrictions may also encourage people who smoke to smoke less, or even quit.

At home

Making your home smoke-free is one of the most important things you can do for the health of your family. Any family member can develop health problems because of secondhand smoke. Children are very sensitive to the toxins. A smoke-free home protects your family, your guests, and even your pets.

Multi-unit housing where smoking is allowed is a special concern and a subject of research. Tobacco smoke can move through air ducts, wall and floor cracks, elevator shafts, and along crawl spaces to contaminate units on other floors. This is true even for units that are far from the smoke.

In public places

Everyone can be exposed to secondhand smoke in public places where smoking is allowed. This includes some restaurants, shopping centers, public transportation, parks, and schools. The Surgeon General has suggested people choose smoke-free restaurants and businesses and let owners of businesses that are not smoke-free know that secondhand smoke is harmful to your family’s health.

Public places where children go are a special area of concern. Make sure that your children’s daycare centers and schools are smoke-free.

Some businesses might be afraid to ban smoking, but there’s no strong evidence that going smoke-free is bad for business.

In the car

Americans spend a great deal of time in cars. If someone smokes there, the toxins can build up quickly, even when the windows are open or the air-conditioner is on. Again, this can be especially harmful to children.

Many expert medical groups have been working to encourage people to make their cars, as well as their homes, smoke-free.

Some states and cities even have laws that ban smoking in the car if you have passengers under a certain age or weight. Many facilities like city buildings, malls, schools, colleges, and hospitals ban smoking on their grounds, including their parking lots.

There is no safe level of exposure to secondhand smoke. Any exposure is harmful.

Particles from secondhand smoke can settle onto surfaces and be absorbed. These particles can stay in household surfaces and dust for a long time after the smoke is gone. This is called thirdhand smoke.

Thirdhand smoke particles are known to include nicotine and cancer-causing chemicals. For example, some of the carcinogens that we know cause lung cancer have been found in dust samples taken from the homes of people who smoke.

Research has also shown that thirdhand smoke can damage human DNA in cell cultures and might increase lung cancer risk in lab animals. Studies continue to look at risks of thirdhand smoke to people’s health.

Thirdhand smoke particles may be stirred up and inhaled with other house dust. They may also be accidentally taken in through the mouth.

Babies and children are at higher risk of being exposed to thirdhand smoke when they play on the floor and put things in their mouths. Touching surfaces before eating can also increase exposure to thirdhand smoke.

Regular cleaning can reduce the amount of thirdhand smoke on surfaces, carpets, and furniture — but only for a short amount of time. Thirdhand smoke levels quickly build back up because particles continue to be released from surfaces.

As the use of e-cigarettes, vapes, and similar devices has increased, there is a growing concern about secondhand vapor. Secondhand vapor is the aerosol of tiny particles exhaled by people who use e-cigarettes. It might be harmful to other people who breathe it in.

Scientists are still learning about the health effects of being exposed to secondhand e-cigarette aerosol. However, the US Surgeon General has concluded that e-cigarette aerosol is not harmless. Secondhand aerosol can expose others to nicotine, and possibly other harmful chemicals.

Smoke-free and tobacco-free policies already in place should also cover e-cigarettes. This will help non-users avoid being exposed to potentially harmful e-cigarette vapor.