Secondhand smoke refers to the smoke and gases emitted from a burning cigarette, cigar, or pipe, as well as the smoke exhaled by the smoker. Even a small amount of secondhand, or environmental, smoke can affect a non-smoker’s health. The primary health risks of smoking cigarettes are also elevated in non-smokers frequently exposed to secondhand smoke, including a 25 percent increase in both cardiovascular (heart) disease and lung cancer. People already suffering from heart disease are at a particularly high risk when exposed to secondhand smoke. Twenty-three states and the District of Columbia ban some or all public smoking.

Secondhand Smoke and Children

Children are the most at risk when exposed to secondhand smoke. This is partially because they do not know how to avoid it. A non-smoking adult can choose to avoid a smoky bar, whereas 35 percent of children live in homes where secondhand smoke is commonplace. Secondhand smoke exposure, even for brief periods, has been shown to have the following negative health effects in children:

1. Retarded lung development and decreased lung function. This is especially true of infants and very young children exposed to secondhand smoke.
2. A higher incidence of asthma and increased severity of attacks, resulting in as many as one million additional doctor visits per year in the U.S. alone.
3. An increased risk of lower respiratory tract infection (as many as 300,000 a year) that require a doctor or hospital visit.
4. Increased fluid in the ear canal, resulting in a higher likelihood of ear infection.
5. As many as 430 Sudden Infant Death Syndrome cases are directly linked to secondhand smoke every year, according to the American Lung Association.

Smoking while pregnant, or even being exposed to secondhand smoke while pregnant, increases the likelihood of miscarriage and premature birth, decreased birth weight, and retarded lung development in the fetus.