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AMERICANS FOR NONSMOKERS RIGHTS
Alarming Facts
I. SECONDHAND
SMOKE KILLS
- There are
53,000 annual deaths in the United States attributable to secondhand
smoke. Of those 53,000 deaths, 37,000 are attributed to heart
disease, 12,000 are attributed to various forms of cancer and 3,700
are attributed to lung cancer. (National Cancer
Institute, "Health effects of exposure to environmental tobacco
smoke: the report of the California Environmental Protection Agency"
Smoking and Tobacco Control Monograph 10)
- Secondhand
smoke is the third leading cause of preventable death in the United
States. For every eight smokers the tobacco industry kills, it takes
one nonsmoker with them. (Glantz, S.A. & Parmley,
W., "Passive Smoking and Heart Disease: Epidemiology, Physiology,
and Biochemistry," Circulation, 1991; 83(1):1-12; and, Taylor, A.,
Johnson, D, & Kazemi, H., "Environmental Tobacco Smoke and
Cardiovascular Disease," Circulation, 1992; 86:699-702)
- The 2000
Environmental Health Information Service's 9th Report on Carcinogens
classified secondhand smoke as a Group A (Human) Carcinogen-a
substance known to cause cancer in humans. There is no safe level of
exposure for Group A toxins.
(Environmental Health Information Service, "9th
Report on Carcinogens," U.S. Department of Health and Human
Services, Public
Health Service, National Toxicology Program, 2000)
- Twenty
minutes'exposure to secondhand smoke causes a nonsmoker's blood
platelets to get sticky, which reduces the ability of the heart to
pump, and puts a nonsmoker at an elevated risk of a heart attack.
(Glantz S, Parmley W. "Even a little secondhand
smoke is dangerous," JAMA 286:462-463, 2001)
- Smoke from
the burning end of a cigarette contains more than 4,000 chemicals
and at least 60 carcinogens, including: formaldehyde, cyanide,
arsenic, carbon monoxide, methane, & benzene. The smoker, and anyone
else nearby, inhales these chemicals. (Environmental
Protection Agency, Indoor Air Facts, No. 5, 1989)
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II. NONSMOKERS
MUST BE PROTECTED FROM SECONDHAND SMOKE
- Nonsmokers
have the right to breathe clean air.
- Smoke-filled
rooms can have up to six times the air pollution of a busy highway.
(Centers for Disease Control, It's Time to Stop
Being a Passive Victim, 1993)
- Nonsmoking
sections do not eliminate nonsmokers' exposure to secondhand smoke;
the smoke knows no boundaries. (The Health
Consequences of Involuntary Smoking: A Report of the U.S. Surgeon
General, 1986)
- Science has
not yet determined a safe level of exposure to secondhand smoke. In
2000, a panel of ventilation experts assembled by the Occupational
Safety and Health Administration and the American Conference of
Governmental Industrial Hygenists concluded that ventilation cannot
eliminate all exposure to secondhand smoke; therefore, ventilation
is not a viable solution to the health risks of secondhand smoke.
(Repace, J. "Can Ventilation Control Secondhand
Smoke in the Hospitality Industry? An analysis of the document
"Proceedings of the Workshop on Ventilation Engineering Controls for
Environmental Tobacco Smoke in the Hospitality Industry" sponsored
by the Federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration and the
American Conference of Governmental Industrial Hygienists prepared
for the California Department of Health Services, 2000)
- Restaurant
workers' exposure to secondhand smoke is 1.6 to 2 times higher than
that of other workers. Bar workers' exposure is 4 to 6 times higher.
("Involuntary Smoking in the Restaurant Workplace,"
Journal of American Medical Association 1993; 270:490-493)
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III. CLEAN INDOOR
AIR LAWS PROTECT NONSMOKERS
- As of March,
2003, nearly 1600 communities across the country, from Barrow,
Alaska to Boston, Massachussetts, and from Helena, Montana to El
Paso, Texas have passed local clean indoor air laws protecting
workers and the public from the dangers of secondhand smoke. Of
those 1600 communities, 48 are 100% smokefree laws for all
workplaces, restaurants and bars.
- According to
Philip Morris, "[T]otal prohibition of smoking in the workplace
strongly affects industry volume. Smokers facing these restrictions
consume 11-15% less than average and quit at a rate that is 85%
higher than average... Milder workplace restrictions, such as
smoking only in designated areas have much less impact on quitting
rates and very little effect on consumption."
(Internal Memorandum from Philip Morris, Bates Nos. 2023914280/4284)
- All
reputable studies have shown that clean indoor air laws either have
no impact or a positive impact on the economic health of businesses
within the hospitality industry. ("Review of the
Quality of Studies on Economic Effects of Smoke-Free Policies on the
Hospitality Industry," Scollo, Lal, Hyland, Glantz, Tobacco
Control, 2003 12:13-20)
- Enforcement
of clean indoor air laws is generally done on a complaint basis,
without the need for active law enforcement. Prior to
implementation, public education about the health effects of
secondhand smoke and the need for a clean indoor air law can help
build support for the law and increase compliance.
(Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Best Practices for
Comprehensive Tobacco Control Programs-August 1999. Atlanta, GA:
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Centers for Disease
Control and Prevention, National Center for Chronic Disease
Prevention and Health Promotion, Office on Smoking and Health,
August 1999)
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IV. SPECIAL
POPULATIONS AND EXPOSURE TO SECONDHAND SMOKE
- The
restaurant industry employs 11.7 million people, or 9% of the
working population, and is the nation's largest employer other than
the government. Latinos/Hispanics comprise 18% of the restaurant
workforce, and are the single largest ethnic group in this
occupational sector. (National Restaurant
Association, 2003 Restaurant Industry Forecast: Industry at A
Glance, 2003. http://www.restaurant.org/research/ind_glance.cfm)
- Despite low
smoking rates and often not allowing smoking at home,
Latino/Hispanic males (58.8%) and Latina/Hispanic females (69.9%)
are less likely than white males (63.5%) and white females (74.1%),
to be covered by workplace smoking laws.
(Shopland, Donald R. Using Science to Further Public
Health: The 30 Year Battle to Protect Nonsmokers from Environmental
Tobacco Smoke. PowerPoint Presentation)
- African
Americans (40.7%) are more likely than the national average (27.3%)
to work in the service industry or as laborers, where they are least
likely to be protected from secondhand smoke. African Americans
(21.7%) are less likely than the national average (30.1%) to work in
professional occupations, which are most likely to have smokefree
workplace laws. (U.S. Census Bureau, Current
Population Survey, March 2000. Table 11. Major Occupation Group of
the Employed Civilian Population 16 Years and Over by Sex, and Race
and Hispanic Origin: March 2000)
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