Are You in Danger of "Third-Hand" Smoke?
The panic over smoking has turned those who light up into social pariahs who are suicidal at best. Even "secondhand" smoke has been blamed for the death of thousands. Now, the latest killer on the loose is "third-hand" smoke. Yes, you read that right. New research actually suggests that something called third-hand smoke can be a serious danger to both babies and pregnant women.
"The dangers of third-hand smoke are very real," says Professor Jonathan Winickoff of Massachusetts General Hospital. "When you smoke - any place - toxic particulate matter from tobacco smoke gets into your hair and clothing."
The theory is that these poisonous particles remain on surfaces in rooms where people smoke. And since small children stay close to the floor, or lay their heads on fabrics, they are at risk for increased exposure.
Yeah, it sounds fairly far fetched to me, too.
The study found that just half of the 1,500 smokers surveyed had any clue about these "dangers," and only 43 percent of these smokers actually bought into the idea that "third- hand smoke" was an actual health danger. (There were no statistics that reflected the percentage of smokers who laughed out loud at the entire concept.)
Forgive my glib dismissal of this third-hand smoke idea. But since I don't buy into the idea of secondhand smoke, I'd be hard-pressed to put much stock in this even-farther-removed new danger.
I happen to think that secondhand smoke is one of the biggest loads of bunk ever to be foisted on the population. After all, it was the hysteria over secondhand smoke that has helped usher in our current age of ever-eroding personal freedoms. As I've written to you on more than one occasion, smokers are merely the first group to have their personal freedoms yanked by do-gooders.
The fact remains: sidestream smoke is simply not an issue, except in the minds of hysterical and gullible people - and a few scientists who should know better.
William Campbell Douglass I.I., M.D. has been called "the conscience of modern medicine," and the National Health Federation voted him "Doctor of the Year."
You can sign up for his "Daily Dose" at DouglassReport.com.
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Comments
Anonymous
I had a good friend who had a bad case of GERD. He was on three (3) perscriptions a day. The side affects were bad. I bought a book by Kevin Trudeau, "Natural Cures They They Don't Want You To Know About". He makes reference to a cure for acid reflux. I sent the information to my friend. It was very simple. A 2 to 4 spoonfulls of Raw Apple Cider Vinegar before each meal. He did this for about 3 weeks. He no longer had acid reflux and did not need any medications. Of cource he detoxed prior to doing this..JD
Anonymous
Exactly I may be an idiot too. However, smoking and other addictions (food, gambling, TV, video game, money, sex, drinking, medications, brain wash by establishments or idea, ...) are dangerous. I don't make no difference regarding illness for the "specific people" involved in a "specific addiction" or their entourage.
J. Kaiser
I must say that I've completely bought into the 2ndhand smoke arguments, probably because I really hate to be trapped in a room with a smoker. I'm curious where Dr. Douglass gets his information that secondhand smoke is not a health concern.
I remember years ago hearing of studies which measured bad effects on heart and circulation just a minute or two into smoke exposure. The stuff below is taken from the American Cancer Society's website. It details all the bad effects of smoke. Can all this information simply be wrong?
I know it's impossible to prove a negative which I guess is what I'm asking Dr. Douglass to do, but it's also easy to dismiss research you don't like. Are there lots of studies which show NO correlation between smoke and disease? I also realize that correlation doesn't necessarily imply causation so this can be pretty tricky. It's hard for me to get my personal prejudice out of the way but I'd really like the truth.
I agree with Dr. Douglass on his concern about personal freedoms. I'm just not sure secondhand smoke is a good place to make that stand.
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QUOTED FROM ACS:
"Secondhand smoke causes cancer"
"Secondhand smoke is classified as a "known human carcinogen" (cancer-causing agent) by the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the US National Toxicology Program, and the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC), a branch of the World Health Organization."
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"Secondhand smoke can cause harm in many ways. In the United States alone, each year it is responsible for:"
"* an estimated 35,000 deaths from heart disease in non-smokers who live with smokers"
* about 3,000 lung cancer deaths in non-smoking adults
* other breathing problems in non-smokers, including coughing, mucus, chest discomfort, and reduced lung function
* 150,000 to 300,000 lung infections (such as pneumonia and bronchitis) in children younger than 18 months of age, which result in 7,500 to 15,000 hospitalizations annually
* increases in the number and severity of asthma attacks in about 200,000 to 1 million children who have asthma
* more than 750,000 middle ear infections in children
Pregnant women exposed to secondhand smoke are also at increased risk of having low birth weight babies.
Secondhand smoke may be linked to breast cancer
An issue that is still being studied is whether secondhand smoke may increase the risk of breast cancer. Both mainstream and secondhand smoke contain about 20 chemicals that, in high concentrations, cause breast cancer in rodents. And we know that in humans, chemicals from tobacco smoke reach breast tissue and are found in breast milk.
Any link between secondhand smoke and breast cancer risk in human studies is still being debated. This is partly because breast cancer risk has not been shown to be increased in active smokers. One possible explanation for this is that tobacco smoke may have different effects on breast cancer risk in smokers and in those who are exposed to secondhand smoke.
A report from the California Environmental Protection Agency in 2005 concluded that the evidence regarding secondhand smoke and breast cancer is "consistent with a causal association" in younger women. This means that the secondhand smoke acts like it could be a cause of breast cancer in these women. The 2006 US Surgeon General's report, The Health Consequences of Involuntary Exposure to Tobacco Smoke, found that there is "suggestive but not sufficient" evidence of a link at this point. In any case, women should be told that this possible link to breast cancer is yet another reason to avoid being around secondhand smoke.
Secondhand smoke kills children and adults who don't smoke, and makes others sick (Surgeon General's report)
The 2006 US Surgeon General's report reached some important conclusions:
* Secondhand smoke causes premature death and disease in children and in adults who do not smoke.
* Children exposed to secondhand smoke are at an increased risk of sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS), acute respiratory infections, ear problems, and more severe asthma. Smoking by parents causes breathing (respiratory) symptoms and slows lung growth in their children.
* Secondhand smoke immediately affects the heart and blood circulation in a harmful way. Over a longer time it also causes heart disease and lung cancer.
* The scientific evidence shows that there is no safe level of exposure to secondhand smoke.
* Many millions of Americans, both children and adults, are still exposed to secondhand smoke in their homes and workplaces despite a great deal of progress in tobacco control.
* The only way to fully protect non-smokers from exposure to secondhand smoke indoors is to prevent all smoking in that indoor space or building. Separating smokers from non-smokers, cleaning the air, and ventilating buildings cannot keep non-smokers from being exposed to secondhand smoke.
Anonymous
Well, I don't agree with any of this because there are those that have lung disease that never smoked or been around any one who smoked. What about the ones who have high blood pressure,heart disease and so on who was never around any one who smoked. My Grandmother lived with a smoker all her adult life and died of old age not disease of any kind.
I think the government is behind all the diseases. Flormaldahid in your meat from the stores, chlorine in washing vegetables. Come on people do a little research on your on. See the truth and blame it on the guilty ones. Wake up!!! floremaldahide in food is not safe! but you can bet they will tell you it is.
ZedeZ
problem is not smoking, but a cigarette loaded with 1000 chemicals.
Dr. Douglass mentioned in one of his reports that there is enough evidence that a simple "raw" pure cigarette even beneficial for health. Unfortunately those cigarettes are hard to find. The alternative is a pure good cuban cigar. Big Pharma is a modern day nazi mafia together with FDA. They both control interests of each other, for money. Everything is based on money. Absolutely everything those two represent is MONEY, creation of billions of dollars. this is their ONE and ONLY interest. Monsanto is another mafia for profit screwing up the natural crops with GMO.
Unfortunately for them, there is nothing more powerful than People's Power. These nazis forget that this is the age of INTRERNET, and KNOWLEDGE and INFORMATION is spreading like a fire. By 2020 these three nazi monsters will start paying their dues for the damage and millions of deaths they caused over the last 70 years.
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