The Verdict Is In : It's Time for Americans to "butt out" in Public Places

Filed in archive News on June 27, 2006

For decades, public health officials and doctors have known that secondhand smoke is bad for anyone who breathes it. Over the years, Americans have tried to accommodate smokers and non smokers by designating smoking areas in public places. The idea was to give smokers a place where they could light up in peace while still allowing non smokers a prayer of avoiding some of the secondhand smoke.

Now, CNN.com reports that the U.S. Surgeon General Richard Carmona has definitively stated that no amount of secondhand smoke is safe. In his report issued today, Dr. Carmona states that "involuntary smoking" puts people at a higher risk of developing lung cancer, heart disease, or other illnesses.

The Surgeon General further declares that he's especially worried about young children who are exposed to secondhand smoke because of their parents' addiction to the weed. One in five children is exposed to secondhand smoke at home, where bans against smoking are ineffective. Those children face higher risks of developing sudden Infant death syndrome (SIDS), pneumonia or other lung infections, ear infections, and asthma.

Fourteen states have already passed laws that effectively ban smoking in workplaces, bars, and restaurants. Dr. Carmona's report will likely spur even more legislation aimed at banning all public smoking nationwide. Personally, I think this is a step in the right direction, but then, I'm neither a smoker nor a bar owner who depends on smokers for revenue. I imagine this report will fuel contention on both sides of the issue, but ultimately, it should be interesting to see how the tobacco industry responds.

About the author: In her spare time, knotheadus writes for Epinions.com and maintains her own Web site, knot-heads.com.