Secondhand smoke
Secondhand smoke is simply other people’s tobacco smoke and is also known as passive smoke or ‘environmental’ tobacco smoke.
Secondhand smoke consists of side stream smoke from the burning tip of the cigarette, and mainstream smoke exhaled by the smoker.
Side stream smoke typically makes up nearly 85% of the smoke in a smoky environment. This type of smoke contains a much higher concentration of toxins, such as hydrogen cyanide, ammonia, carbon monoxide and acrolein, than mainstream smoke.
Secondhand smoke contains a cocktail of over 4,000 different chemicals, many of which are toxic and harmful including more than 50 known carcinogens such as benzo(a)pyrene, chromium, vinyl chloride, and benzene.
The invisible killer
Evidence shows that ventilation cannot control exposure to secondhand smoke:
- We know that 85% of secondhand smoke is invisible and odourless.
- Secondhand smoke is made up of gases and microscopic particles.
- Research has shown that to remove the risks of secondhand smoke, an enclosed premises would need wind tunnel-like rates of ventilation.
- Ventilation can actually distribute secondhand smoke throughout buildings.
Evidence that smokefree benefits health
Dramatic reduction in exposure to secondhand smoke:
- Irish hospitality workers experienced significant reductions in the levels of both levels of airborne pollutants and levels of carbon monoxide concentrations (70% decrease) during the first 6 weeks after the introduction of a smokefree policy in Ireland.
- Levels of carbon monoxide decreased by 45% in non-smoking Irish bar workers one year after the legislation was introduced.
- Before smokefree legislation was in place, 68% of Irish workers reported having over 21 hours of secondhand smoke exposure per week. This changed to 70% of workers reporting no exposure to secondhand smoke at work.
- In a survey of 104 hospitality workers in New York, subjects reported an 89% decrease in exposure to secondhand smoke at work as a result of the Clean Indoor Air Act; this was confirmed by cotinine tests of the workers. Cotinine is an indicator of exposure to tobacco smoke.
- A report issued on the third anniversary of New York’s smokefree law showed that New Yorkers' exposure to secondhand smoke had declined by 50% overall.
Measurable improvement to workers’ health:
- A Dundee University study showed bar workers’ lung function increased by as much as 10% just two months after smokefree legislation was introduced. Those showing secondhand smoke-related symptoms fell from 80% to fewer than half.
- The Journal of the American Medical Association documented a significant improvement documented in respi ratory heal th among bartenders after the passage of the Californian smokefree workplace legislation.
Marked decrease in air pollution:
- A Global Study of Irish Pubs found the level of air pol lution inside Irish pubs in smokefree cities was 93% lower than the level in pubs in cities where smoking is permitted.
- A Global Air Monitoring Study of 1,212 indoor workplaces in 24 different countries found that the level of indoor pollution was 89% lower in places that were smokefree compared to those where smoking was observed.
