Are you a victim of Second Hand Smoke? why?

Question

How many of you guys smoke in front of a child, or seen another person smoking in front of their child? What are some reasons that you want to do to give up?

Answer 1

First, contrary to reports, second-hand smoke is NOT more dangerous than first-hand smoke.

There are chemicals emitted, like hydrogen cyanide, but not in deathly concentrations. There is also sulfuric acid in rain water in many locations, in sufficient quantities to erode stone. Particulates from the engines of large trucks can lodge in lungs and cause damage as well.

The point is that there is a relative danger in everything. Responsible parents should try to avoid smoking near young children (especially in enclosed areas like cars) to protect the lungs of the little ones.

I'm not saying there is no danger in second-hand smoke, but it is not as dangerous as many would have you believe. You aren't going to walk in a smokey bar once and then die 24 hours later. Nor have there been any real and definitive studies that I know of on the actual danger of casual exposure to second-hand smoke.

Answer 2

You asked 4 questions for 2 points so I'll answer the first and second.

I didn't think smoking was that bad as I at one time would spend a lot of social time being with smokers at clubs for the music, and on office breaks, and with friends at their homes.

Several years ago I moved into this apartment wherein I knew an old lady for 2 years and she died of esophogeal cancer from smoking, everything she owned plus her walls were yellow and everything stunk and it also affected the walls outside her apartment and what smoke went thru the crevices to the person upstairs who also smoked but complained about her smoking.
This lady had 2 cats, and they were adopted. One of the cats died last month from lung cancer from the second hand smoke. I asked the vet who said cats are more likely to get cancer from smoke than dogs are.

Two years ago my neighbor downstairs moved in and we're in Florida where you leave your windows open a lot. And "every" morning this neighbor walks outdoors ot walk her dog and hacks, coughs deeply to the point of sounding like she's regurgitating. As you know (recently a survey was taken) the worst sound a person could hear is throwing up, and this woman does it daily. And it's all from her heavy smoking.

I thinking smoking is gross. I think people who do it are adicted. Maybe you heard that recently a study was done and the doctors found out there is a body part right above the ear called the "insula" which part craves tobacco in some people. When removed people don't crave tobacco anymore. I suspect in time doctors will find a way to trick the insula into having no interest in tobacco anymore. I wonder how many people will stop smoking because they can.

Answer 3

Yes I am a Victim of Second Hand Smoke so is my child. Why because my husband smokes.

Answer 4

I am a victim of second hand smoke...fortunately my parents did not smoke, but there are so many people that smoke in public places that its sometimes unavoidable. For those of you idiots who say second hand smoke won't hurt anyone, talk to someone with asthma. While walking through a cloud of smoke once in a while probably won't give you lung cancer, it can give someone with respiratory problems immediate breathing difficulty, and you CAN die from an asthma attack. Thankfully my state (WA) has banned smoking in all public buildings and within 25 feet of all entrances, so it's not too bad here anymore, but there are still people who smoke on the sidewalks, in parks, etc. I think we should eventually make smoking illegal altogether. People are obviously not smart enough not to do something they know will probably kill them. The government already has laws against plenty of other things that people can do to harm themselves. I watched my grandfather die a horrible and slow death as a result of smoking for many years (even though he stopped 20 years before he died) from pulmonary fibrosis, no one should bring that upon themselves or others.

Answer 5

Second hand smoke is a problem however so is fossil fuels,destruction of the rain forest the paper you write on is bleached but nobody worries were it goes once there done with it and I agree when indoors smokers should be more considerate and throwing your buts and empty packs around is not the best thing for the environment,it is true you are 50% more likely to get respiratory illness when you smoke( that is not for certain I know some 80 plus ladies who have smoked all their lives and there no sick)should you quit ? yes should you smoke ? no but if somebody tries to throw water on me while I smoke or tries to knock it out of my mouth,second hand smoke wont be the only reason to go see the doctor!!!!!

Answer 6

Well. You WERE a victim of second hand smoke. But no, you should be fine. Ten minutes won't do anything. Just chill out, no need to panic. If you hate smokers, ask her not to smoke around you. Not a biggie. You won't die.

Answer 7

No I dont think I am a victim of second hand smoke because I dont beleive it can have any effect on me. But yea I seen it effect some kids to maybe that's probably y I have breathing problems. But hey it could also be from all the excersizing I do to. Or it can be just my heart I wouldn't really kno I have to many ideas to think of.

Answer 8

Yes, when I go into a restaurant that has a smoking section, when I go into the mall or store and there are smokers just outside the door, when I'm at a traffic light and the car next to me has their window down and hanging their cigarette out the window and blowing their smoke in my direction.

To believe that second hand smoke has no effect on people is ridiculous. It may not be any worse than sucking on the cigarette itself (since the filters are really not that effective) but you can't tell me that smoking isn't bad for you.

Regardless of which end your getting the smoke from, it's bad for you. What's worse is when you are choosing to not smoke, and still you are forced to breathe it in because some yahoo is smoking around you.

Fortunately as adults we can avoid areas that are dominated by smokers such as bars, where we sit in the restaurant (even though the smoke drifts all over the place despite the belief by smokers that they are somehow eliminating the smoke by blowing it away...) and who we associate with in places where public smoking is allowed.

Children unfortunately don't have the same freedoms as adults and are often in situations where they can't leave the car while mom or dad (or both) are smoking (and again the smoker logic that cracking the window eliminates smoke from the car), or they can't leave the house, or are forced to stand or walk next to mom or dad puffing away like a train. They're rights to clean air are stepped on more than any of us adults and it's sad.

It all boils down to respect for others. I will not go to a person and pull the cigarette out of their mouth... that would be disrespectful and inappropriate. So I expect that a smoker would not shove their smoke down my throat... I can't choose not to breathe whereas they can choose not to smoke.

An addict seeks help when they can't kick a habit, so a smoker who understands the health risks to both themselves and others should also seek help to kick their habit.

To the person who said smokers pay for but can't use public state owned facilities... that is balogna. You absolutely can use them, but if you choose to smoke, you can't use them while smoking... out of respect for the health of other people who care about thiers.

It's all about choices and respect for others.

Answer 9

My parents smoked in front of me.But I live on my own now so I am only exposed to second hand smoke when I am out in public.

Answer 10

My dad chain smoked for 50 years from age 12 until he died of congestive heart failure from complications of lung cancer at age 62. My ENT believes that my chronic sinus issues are related to growing up in a smoke-filled home. Granted this is just a theory and not a given. I do not smoke, never have, never will. His death was painful to watch. I can't imagine how painful it was for him.

Answer 11

Second-hand smoke is QUITE dangerous. For people who DON'T believe it, all they have to do is smoke around ME one whole day - but then they also have to bring me stuff to get me over the cold I'll inevitably get the next week afterward.
I was sick with bronchitis CONSTANTLY as a child. Not because my parents smoked (because they didn't), but because ONE of my grandparents (my mom's mom) smoked. We could go for a visit once every 2 weeks for ONE day on the weekend, and I would get sick. And you KNOW that kids (she died from a heart attack when I was 8) don't spend all that much time IN the house when they've got things outside to do and explore. TO THIS DAY, if I'm around smoking for a majority of the day, I'll be sick later.
This is why I don't let ANYONE smoke in my house, and if we visit other peoples' houses, we go into a back room if they're going to smoke (or outside). I won't let the same thing happen to my daughter.
My husband's cousin is 5, and she has the same thing happen - she's sick CONSTANTLY. And no matter how much I've explained MY similar symptoms with her mother, and no matter how many times the DOCTOR tells her not to smoke around her daughter, she still does.
Reasons to give up, if THAT doesn't deter you, are the fact that my grandmother(mom's mom) smoked for YEARS, and then her heart just gave out one day. She was 63. My grandfather (dad's dad), who will probably live at least another 10 years, smoked for about 10-12 years ONLY (he's 73, and genetically they live til about their 80's). He has Emphysema now, and will live the rest of his life with breathing problems. He is too proud to go on oxygen, but I'm afraid that one day it will get so bad that he'll have to. He looks over the farm he loves and wishes he could walk over it again, but he has to be content with watching others come and farm FOR him, because he can not breathe well enough to walk that far, or afford to get stuck in a field on a tractor.