Cigarette smoke on clothes is also toxic.

Lab mice suffered liver and brain damage and increased blood sugar levels by up to 30% after just a few months of being exposed to clothing that smelled of cigarette smoke.

Cigarette smoke often lingers on clothes, carpets, furniture, and other items of smokers and in rooms where people have smoked. Many people find the "smoky" smell of these items unpleasant, but few people think that smelling them is also considered a form of passive smoking.

Mice in the experiment were exposed to cigarette smoke-stained fabric on a regular basis. Within the first month, the mice showed a 50% increase in inflammation-triggering proteins in their blood compared to mice raised in a healthy environment.

By the second month, the team found that damaged cells in their livers and brains had increased. By the fourth month, their blood sugar levels had increased by 30% and they showed marked insulin resistance—signs of type 2 diabetes.

The concept of "third-hand smoke" (THS), or third cigarette smoking, has been mentioned a lot in a study recently published in the journal Clinical Science. Professor Manuela Martins-Green, a cell biologist from the University of California (USA), the main author of the study, affirmed that just being exposed to the amount of cigarette smoke absorbed into furniture is enough to cause health risks, specifically liver and brain damage, diabetes, cancer, etc.

Scientists say this study is just the first step in demonstrating the harmful effects of THS - what they call a "stealth toxin". Because humans have a much longer life span than mice, the effects of THS also develop much more slowly. They will continue to collate data and study more clearly in humans.

THS can persist on surfaces for years, particularly in the hair, skin, and clothing of smokers. They can mix with dust, settle on surfaces, and penetrate porous materials such as flooring and drywall. They can also combine with indoor pollutants, such as ozone and nitrous acid, to form compounds that can damage DNA and lead to cancer.

A study published earlier this year also focused on the effects of THS on children. Babies were hospitalized for exposure to secondhand smoke simply because they read nicotine-laden books that their parents had read while smoking.

According to NLĐ