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 HEALTH ALERTS AND BULLETINS
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Secondhand Smoke Fact Sheet
04/21/2006
·Secondhand smoke is the third most preventable cause of death in the United States.
§Secondhand smoke is a known cause of cancer, heart disease and other respiratory ailments, killing 53,000 in the U.S. each year. It is estimated to cause 3,000 lung cancer deaths and 62,000 coronary heart disease deaths in the U.S. each year.
·Secondhand smoke kills more Americans each year than murder, drugs and AIDS combined.
·Secondhand smoke is known to trigger asthma attacks, which puts everyone with this ailment at risk.
·Comprehensive smoke-free ordinances are a win-win for the community - they protect public health, they protect employee health and they do not hurt local businesses
·Surveys show no significant impact on businesses such as restaurants that go smoke-free. In fact, some actually see revenues increase.
·An effective smoke-free ordinance will protect the health of all workers. No one should have to choose where they work by the risk of getting lung cancer.
·Smoke-free environments not only protect the health of non-smokers, but research indicates they play an essential role in helping smokers end their habits.
·Clean indoor air ordinances restrict smoking in areas where it may affect the health of children and nonsmokers.
·Surveys show no significant impact on businesses such as restaurants that go smoke-free. In fact, some actually see revenues increase.
·Businesses that implement smoke-free policies often experience some of the following benefits: improved air quality, less money spent cleaning and repairing smoke damage, lower insurance costs, etc.
·Workers exposed to secondhand smoke are one-third more likely to develop lung cancer than those who work in a smoke-free environment.
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