Scientists Identify New Danger From Tobacco Smoke
Here’s yet another reason to book a nonsmoking hotel room.
Scientists have long known that the residue from cigarette smoke clings to surfaces for weeks and even months. Now there is new research indicating that the film left by burning tobacco, when exposed to a chemical often found in the air, forms a brew of potent carcinogens that can coat clothing, dust particles and even human skin.
Children, who breathe in more dust for their body weight than adults, are most vulnerable to health problems from such “third-hand smoke,” the scientists said.
“We’ve identified a new risk for tobacco smoke,” said Lara Gundel, an environmental physical chemist at California’s Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, who is one of the study’s authors. “That risk is that third-hand smoke residues can get more dangerous over time.”
Smokers already know that smoking is harmful, says Michael Thun, a top epidemiologist at the American Cancer Society. Still, the new study “is useful for smokers to know. … If they have little kids, the choice is to smoke outside if [they] can’t stop smoking.”
The new findings come in part from a highly unorthodox laboratory — a 1966 pickup truck.
The truck belongs to a chain smoker recruited by Gundel and her colleagues. The smoker, whose identity is protected by confidentiality rules, commutes to work in the truck, puffing an average of 10 cigarettes a day along the way.
The scientists swabbed the pickup’s dashboard and found a cocktail of compounds that cause cancer. They also found compounds — not present in fresh tobacco smoke — that cause cellular changes linked to cancer.
The researchers then did experiments in a conventional lab, wafting an airborne chemical often found in rooms and cars over a surface painted with nicotine. That created the same noxious compounds found in the pickup.
These dangerous chemicals have plenty of opportunity to develop in places where someone regularly lights up. That’s because nicotine doesn’t conveniently blow away. Instead, it hangs around for a long time on walls, bed frames, dashboards and other surfaces.
As a result, those items can harbor the carcinogens that form when nicotine mixes with air. The risk could come from inhaling carcinogen-laden dust, or from touching clothing or furniture sprinkled with carcinogens, Gundel said.
“It’ll be on people’s clothes and skin,” she said, and the most vulnerable people are “kids crawling around on the carpets.”
Other experts cautioned — and Gundel agreed — that it’s not clear how significant the risk might be.
“It’s a little preliminary to get worked up about this particular route of exposure,” said Stephen Hecht of the University of Minnesota. “If I were a betting man, I would bet the [exposure to carcinogens] would be a lot lower than from secondhand smoke.”
“The public may have a sense of, ‘Where does it end?’” says Thun. “But it’s something that parents of small kids may want to pay attention to.”
To whom it may concern, I would like you to make a note for other to view. and know of. I smoked for about 36 year and had two near death from a heart attack . went for a operation where then it was a three way bypass. and took a vein from my leg and chest.
As time went on, I thought fine and then my heart started to fail.
I did give up smoking yet around smokers. I began to get heart pains and lack of energy, I did a cath and found out that I was bad. and did some EECP that seem to help me sone. My conidtion again, started to get worse. and I take 4 nitro at a time. they took
another test o me and found out that my arterys were 100percent block and the vein I lived on from my heart was like a string all shred up and I had one artery, that was 30 70 but weak and deseased
so all my artery block up 100percent except the one that is deseased and I live on the vein they took from my leg.
so you say in so many article that if you stop smoking you get better and in fact you do not so I know many do not know yet all the effect of smoking but this is true and I am one that is ont. better. in fact they found a spot on my lung now and ask do you smoke I sais I did but not know and they said it did not matter it just stay in the body at times forever. the effect of it will desease your body once it starts.
I crave I mean crave a cig daily since I stop and it is like a hold on me to smoke a urge inside and makes me upset and i want it so bad I do crave them So drinker in life i hear them say it is like a mokey on the back this is the same, hard to stop .I pray and I push it out of me and I think if I pick it up and smoke I will die in a week time, or s darn mad at it anyway for it to hurt me as it has and would do all to make others understand that it is a kiler and destroy your health and has to me and many.
I will if I live write something for other to understand and know. as I did not think for one min that it was a danger to me even if they said so after years of my smoking and addictive I thought they did it for the smell of non smokers who hate the smell of smoke. I did not beleive it harm me and the other thing I did think was no way if it was a real danger to us, they take it of the market and not hurt others so you see I was a abused person from tobacco smoking. and go thur such a hard time not to have a cig.
so please do not say if you stop it you will be cured of what you have in a year or five or so it is not true at all you may help it some but cure of it no it is no cure at all once it has got hold of your body and destory parts of you, Please study it more. as we know that it is not study enough yet.
thank you for allowing me to speak to you and if you would get back to me I would appreciate it , thank you, J Maryann g at my above email thank you,