What is passive smoking?

(Baonghean.vn) -Secondhand smoke is one of the factors that cause many cardiovascular and lung diseases, reduces respiratory function and affects the reproductive function of men and women.

Father smokes, both father and son get sick. Photo: Internet

What is passive smoking?

Passive smoking is the act of inhaling cigarette smoke from the air, without directly smoking a cigarette, pipe, or cigar.

The sidestream smoke from the burning end of a cigarette mixes with the main stream smoke exhaled by the smoker to create "cigarette smoke released into the environment" or "passive cigarette smoke" and the act of inhaling this cigarette smoke is called "passive smoking".

Why is secondhand smoke a serious issue?

That is because cigarette smoke is also an indirect cause of cancer risks, as well as many other diseases.

Smoke emitted from the burning end of a cigarette is more toxic than the smoke inhaled by the smoker because it contains 26 times more toxic substances due to burning at high temperatures and not going through a filter..

According to recent statistics from scientists, cigarette smoke contains more than 7,000 chemical compounds, of which 250 are toxic, and at least 69 are known carcinogens.

International research in the past 20 years on the effects of secondhand smoke has shown that: Secondhand smoke is one of the factors causing many cardiovascular and pulmonary diseases, reducing respiratory function and affecting the reproductive function of men and women.

People who regularly inhale cigarette smoke increase their risk of coronary heart disease by 25-30%, lung disease by 20-30% and stroke by 82%. Infants and young children who regularly inhale cigarette smoke will increase the rate of lower respiratory tract infections (such as bronchitis, pneumonia) and otitis media; increase the symptoms of chronic respiratory tract such as asthma; reduce lung development and increase the risk of sudden infant death syndrome.

Pregnant women who inhale cigarette smoke during pregnancy can cause changes in fetal development, leading to miscarriage, premature birth, or low birth weight.

Passive smoking is a concern for the entire community. Photo: Internet

According to some studies, the rate of exposure to cigarette smoke at home is much higher than at work. In particular, according to some studies, the rate of exposure to cigarette smoke at home for women and children is 50-70%. Through some research figures, it also shows that the rate of regular exposure to secondhand smoke in Vietnam is also very high.

This is also the scientific basis for the current Law on Tobacco Harm Prevention to clearly stipulate that smoking is completely prohibited in public places.

Specifically, according to Article 11 of this Law, public places where smoking is completely prohibited include:

Public places where smoking is completely prohibited both indoors and on premises (medical facilities; educational facilities, except for facilities specified in Point b, Clause 2 of this Article; facilities for care, nurturing, entertainment and recreation exclusively for children; facilities or areas with high risk of fire and explosion); public places where smoking is completely prohibited indoors (workplaces; colleges, universities, academies; public places, except for cases specified in Clause 1 of this Article and Clause 1, Article 12 of this Law) and smoking is completely prohibited on some means of public transport such as cars and airplanes.

In addition to the public places where smoking is completely prohibited as stipulated in Article 11 of the Law, there are a number of other public places that currently have regulations prohibiting smoking, but implementation is still very limited. The reason for this situation is that the smoking rate in Vietnam is still quite high.

In the current conditions of Vietnam, a complete ban on smoking in these places is not feasible, so in addition to regulating public places to completely ban smoking, there should be a mechanism to allow smoking in some public places. The owner of the place is allowed to organize a place specifically for smokers.

This regulation not only ensures the prevention of the effects of cigarette smoke on the health of others, but also ensures the needs of smokers, prevents the risk of violating the smoking ban, creates civilized behavior and habits when using tobacco, and avoids "immunity" to the law. At the same time, this regulation also creates difficulties and inconveniences for smokers (because they are only allowed to smoke in designated areas), which will help them gradually reduce smoking and increase motivation to quit smoking./.

Thanh Son

(Synthetic)