Secondhand Smoke: The New Frontier in Tobacco Control
We've all experienced it before. While strolling down the sidewalk, sitting in a park or even relaxing at home, you notice an unmistakable cloud of smoke drifts over to you from a nearby cigarette. More than a mere annoyance, it can bring a hearty cough, watering eyes and a distinct stench that lingers for hours. And for people like Sondra Wallace, this scenario can represent a true case of life or death.
"My neighbors were heavy smokers and whether they were in their yard or inside their house, cigarette smoke found its way into my home," recalled Sondra, a 73-year old San Jose resident suffering from Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD). "Up to this point, my disease would only bother me periodically. But once their cigarette smoke became a regular guest in my house, I developed a deep cough that would not go away. Even worse, I would wake up every morning feeling weak with little to no energy. I've only started to feel better now that it has been months since I've moved."
A Danger To All
While it is not hard to imagine how secondhand smoke can impact a lung
disease patient like Sondra, the truth of the matter is that it poses a
significant risk to even perfectly healthy individuals. This past June,
our nation's chief medical officer joined a growing consensus of health
authorities to recognize the threat posed by secondhand smoke. In his office's
latest report, The Health Consequences of Involuntary Exposure to Tobacco
Smoke, the Surgeon General found that non-smokers who are exposed to secondhand
smoke are at a 20 to 30 percent higher risk for developing heart disease
and/or lung cancer. It has also been shown to cause serious health problems
in children such as sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS), ear infections
and asthma attacks. Even more compelling perhaps is the fact that the report
found that there is no safe level of exposure to secondhand smoke.
"Secondhand smoke contains more than 50 cancer-causing chemicals and
is itself a known human carcinogen," said Surgeon General Richard Carmona.
"Even brief exposure to secondhand smoke has immediate adverse effects
on the cardiovascular system and increases the risk for heart disease and
lung cancer."
While the Surgeon General's report has been welcome news in the health community, it only confirmed what many of us have known for years. For the drive to protect the public from the dangers of secondhand smoke began long before the Surgeon General made headlines this summer.
A Tradition of Local Advocacy
In the late 1970s, community advocacy efforts led by Breathe California (which was called the American Lung Association of Santa Clara-San Benito Counties at the time) brought some of the nation's first public smoking restrictions to the Bay Area. A campaign that started in Los Altos with a single ban on smoking in city hall elevators grew to include laws in numerous cities designating public buildings as smoke-free. By the time California passed its landmark workplace smoking law in 1995, the agency had helped almost every local government adopt an ordinance that provided its residents with equal or greater protection from secondhand smoke.
"Our agency has always been on the cutting edge of tobacco control efforts and is proud to have helped enact the first smoke-free ordinances in the country," said Margo Sidener, President and CEO of Breathe California of the Bay Area. "As local smoking rates continue to drop, we must work to ensure that non-smokers are also protected from the toxic pollutants present in cigarette smoke."
With public buildings effectively conquered, the frontier has shifted toward other venues. Through Community Connections, a project funded by a grant from the California Department of Health Services, Breathe California has focused its efforts on facilitating new smoking policies (both public and private) for parks and multi-unit residential complexes. By working with local governments, community groups and property managers, the agency's goal is to ensure that non-smokers do not have to put their health at risk while at home or enjoying a public outdoor venue. Although the path has proven challenging, the experiences of Sondra Wallace has kept the importance of this work clearly in focus.
"I tried to talk to my neighbors and explain how their smoking was affecting me, but they refused to try any of the alternatives that would prevent their smoke from drifting into my home," she continued. "I tried appealing to my condo board, but they would not act either. So, after 29 years in my home, I had no choice but to move. I couldn't live with cigarette smoke constantly around me - I felt like I was trapped in my own home."
Taming the New Frontier
Although their efforts were not enough to resolve Sondra's situation, the agency continues to push on. After successfully advocating for new smoking restrictions in Milpitas parks, the agency has been looking for avenues to make public outdoor events smoke-free. They have also been meeting with numerous condominium and apartment managers to educate them about secondhand smoke issues and discuss a range of potential policies that would protect their residents. And fresh off a strong wave of publicity surrounding the Surgeon General's report, the agency's efforts may be beginning to pay off.
"I was being bothered by a neighbor's cigarette smoke to the point where it was affecting my health and ability to enjoy my home," commented a caller to the agency's Secondhand Smoke Helpline who preferred not to be named. "So, I brought the issue up with my condominium board - my complaint was with them, not my neighbor. It was the board's responsibility to protect me while I was in my home. It took many rounds of writing letters and placing complaints, but finally after 6 months, the property manager spoke directly to my neighbor. And since then, I have been living relatively smoke-free."
Although this resident had to endure a long and frustrating process, in the end his condominium complex did take action to protect his health. While the complex stopped short of drafting a formal policy, their willingness to act reflects a growing awareness that the dangers posed by secondhand smoke must be addressed. And as more and more people realize how crucial of a health issue this is, the more success the agency will enjoy as it continues its venture into tobacco control’s new frontier.
For more information on secondhand smoke or the agency's efforts to bring smoke-free parks and apartments to the area, call (408) 998-5865.