HHS HealthBeat (January 05, 2009)

Thirdhand smoke and kids

From the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, I’m Ira Dreyfuss with HHS HealthBeat.

Thirdhand smoke is stuff you can smell but not see – what lingers in the air after the cigarette is out, like what you get in a smoking hotel room. And like any other smoke, it’s dangerous.

Of course, it’s still there in many places. So researcher Jonathan Winickoff of MassGeneral Hospital for Children looked at survey data on what people knew and did. The study, in the journal Pediatrics, was supported by the National Institutes of Health.

Winickoff says that people who knew thirdhand smoke harms children were more likely to, for instance, ban smoking in the home. But he says:

[Jonathan Winickoff speaks] ``We found only 27 percent of smokers had a strict ban on smoking in their home and car.’’

Winickoff says quitting smoking is the best way to prevent smoke from harming people you love.

Learn more at hhs.gov.

Last revised: January, 05 2009