What are the effects of secondhand smoke?

  Is secondhand smoke just as dangerous as smoking a cigarette?What are the dangers to infants, childr

Short term effects you might notice straight away include:

* Coughing

* Headache

* Eye irritation

* Sore throat

* Sneezing and runny nose

* Feeling sick

* Breathing problems (and possibly an asthma attack)

* Irregular heartbeat (a particular problem for people with heart disease)

Long term effects from exposure to secondhand smoke include:

* Worsening of chest problems and allergies like asthma, hayfever, bronchitis and emphysema

* Increased risk of heart disease

* Increased risk of lung cancer

* Pregnant women exposed to secondhand smoke can pass on the harmful gases and chemicals to their babies

Is secondhand smoke just as dangerous as smoking a cigarette?

People exposed to secondhand smoke face the same dangers as smokers themselves. They too inhale the same poisonous gases and thousands of toxic chemicals found in the tobacco smoke, and are therefore susceptible to the same short and long-term effects.

For example, the risk of lung cancer for non-smokers increases by 10-30 per cent given long-term exposure to secondhand smoke. The effects on children can be more serious because their bodies are still developing.

What are the dangers to infants, children and unborn babies?

Tobacco smoke contains poisonous gases and thousands of toxic chemicals. These poisons get into the bodies of children who live in smoky atmospheres. Children are even more sensitive to smoke than adults because their bodies are young and still developing.

Babies and children exposed to a smoky atmosphere are:

* Twice as likely to have asthma attacks and chest infections

* More likely to need hospital care in their first year of life

* Off sick from school more often

* More likely to get more coughs, colds and wheezes

Medical research also shows they have:

* Much higher risk of cot death than the children of non-smokers

* Increased risk of meningitis

* More chance of getting ear infections and ’glue ear’, which can lead to partial deafness

Secondhand smoke can also affect unborn babies. Those born to non-smoking mothers who are exposed to secondhand smoke are likely to weigh less at birth than those born to mothers who are not exposed.

For more information about the effects of smoking during pregnancy, see the articles about smoking and pregnancy.

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