Children exposed to secondhand smoke are inhaling many of the same cancer-causing substances as smokers. Secondhand smoke has more than 50 carcinogens, poisonous chemicals such as formaldehyde (used to embalm dead bodies), arsenic (used in pesticides), ammonia (found in household cleaner) and hydrogen cyanide (used in chemical weapons) seep into their lungs.
With regard to secondhand-smoke exposure, children are a special population because of their growing lungs, an inability to avoid smoke-permitted environments and inherently faster breathing rates, which lead to increased vulnerability and greater exposure. Because their bodies are developing, infants and young children are especially vulnerable to the poisons in second-hand smoke. Unborn babies and infants who are exposed to SHS tend to have low birth weight, weaker lungs, may be born premature, and are twice as likely to die from Sudden Infant Death Syndrome. There are 430 deaths annually in the U.S. from SIDS because of infant exposure to secondhand smoke.
Secondhand smoke causes 300,000 yearly cases of pneumonia and bronchitis in children, which often require hospitalization. Other respiratory problems include coughing, wheezing, phlegm, and breathlessness. It can also cause wheezing illnesses in early childhood. If an exposed child has asthma, their asthma attacks may become more frequent and more severe, again, requiring hospitalization. Children may also suffer from increased frequency of ear infections, surgeries required to place ear tubes, headaches, sore throats, eye irritation, stuffy noses, tooth decay, and cataracts.
An informed public is able to make better choices to help keep our children healthy and safe.
LYNN SCHOLL, Early Childhood Education Program, Ferris State University/Whitehall