Chances are you wouldn’t eat rat poison or drink nail polish remover. So, why subject yourself to secondhand smoke, which contains more than 4,000 chemicals, including arsenic (found in rat poison), acetone (an ingredient in nail polish remover) and formaldehyde (used to embalm bodies)?

Secondhand smoke is the smoke given off by the burning end of cigarettes, pipes or cigars and the smoke exhaled from the lungs of smokers that can then be involuntarily inhaled by nonsmokers. The reality is that although you may never pick up a cigarette in your lifetime, you can still develop life-threatening diseases simply by exposure to secondhand smoke.

Secondhand smoke is responsible for more than 38,000 lung cancer and heart disease deaths among adult nonsmokers in the United States.

There are no safe levels of exposure, but you can take steps to clear the secondhand smoke from your life. Start by declaring your car and home “smoke-free zones” and establish rules for smoking family members or guests.

Secondhand smoke doesn’t just smell bad, it’s bad for you. Protect yourself and your family and from this silent killer!

Sources:

http://www.cdc.gov/tobacco/data_statistics/Factsheets/SecondhandSmoke.htm

http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/mm5114a2.htm

Continue reading "Stop the Spin on Hawaii’s Smoke-free Law"

For smokers and non-smokers alike, the choice to lead a smoke-free life is a personal one. For many it is not an easy choice and it is important to know that a number of resources and support services exist to help you clear the smoke from your life.

Want to quit smoking? Seek help! There are many ways to quit, including:

• Using nicotine replacement products (gum and patches)
• Call a hotline like The Hawaii Tobacco Quitline at 1-800-QUIT-NOW, for free, confidential support tailored to your needs
• Attend smoking cessation classes or join a local support group, like Queen’s Medical Centers “Quit Tobacco Monthly Clinic”

Don’t let the lack of health insurance stand in your way. Many programs are free or offered at low cost to those without insurance.

Don’t smoke? Everyone can do something to clear the smoke from their lives and the lives of those around them. Here are some quick tips to try

• Get involved in a local anti-tobacco organization such as the Coalition for Tobacco-Free Hawaii or The American Cancer Society
• Ask someone you care about to quit smoking, and guide them along the way
• Declare your home or car as a smoke-free zone

Get on your way to living a happier and healthier lifestyle today!

Smokeless tobacco is just another extremely addictive nicotine product peddled by Big Tobacco - endangering the public’s health in forms such as snuff, chewing tobacco, tobacco lozenges and nicotine gel.

Although international health studies have suggested that smokeless tobacco is slightly less deadly than cigarettes - it is by no means a safe product. Like cigarettes, the nicotine contained in smokeless tobacco is as addictive as heroin and is linked with oral and pancreatic cancer.

Even more alarming is that in the United States as cigarette sales continue declining at rapid rates, sales of smokeless tobacco are slowly rising at 4 percent a year. The tobacco industry is trying desperately to keep control of their billions of dollars in profits by convincing the public, the FDA and lawmakers that smokeless tobacco is less dangerous than cigarettes and should be embraced by consumers.

Don’t be fooled by smokeless tobacco - spread the truth to your friends and family about its harmful effects!