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A
tobacco-free NIH protects the health of nonsmoking
employees while providing an environment conducive
to tobacco users who are working to either quit or
cut back on their use of tobacco. A tobacco-free
NIH is expected to have a substantially greater effect
on tobacco consumption than current policies that
permit smoking in designated areas. The benefits
of the Tobacco-Free HHS are diverse and include:
- Increased productivity
- Decreased absenteeism
- Lower costs of medical expenditures associated
with tobacco use
- Lower consumption rates among non-quitters
- Improved success in long-range tobacco cessation
- Increased cost savings for employers, including
costs associated with the risk of fire, property
damage, maintenance, and employee benefits (Worker's
Compensation, Disability, Retirement, Injury, and
Insurance)
The Risks of Tobacco Use and Secondhand
Smoke
Tobacco use remains the leading preventable cause
of death in the U.S.
Each year in the U.S., approximately 440,000 people
die of an illness caused by smoking cigarettes.
More than 8.6 million Americans currently suffer
from at least one serious illness caused by smoking.
In 2006, about one in five (45.3 million) adult
Americans smoked cigarettes. By 12th grade, about
half of all students have tried smoking and one in
five (20.0%) are current smokers.
All tobacco products are harmful. Smokeless tobacco
(chewing tobacco, snus, and snuff) is addictive,
contains dozens of cancer-causing agents, and may
cause oral cancer and other diseases.
Exposure to secondhand smoke causes premature death
and disease in children and adults who do not smoke:
- Secondhand smoke is a known human carcinogen
(cancer-causing agent); it contains more than 50
chemicals that can cause cancer. Secondhand smoke
causes lung cancer in people who have never smoked
themselves.
- Secondhand smoke causes heart disease. Even brief
exposure can have immediate adverse effects on
the cardiovascular system, interfering with the
normal functioning of the heart, blood, and cardiovascular
systems in ways that increase the risk of heart
attack.
- Secondhand smoke causes acute respiratory effects.
Even brief exposure can trigger respiratory symptoms
including cough, phlegm, wheezing, and breathlessness,
and can trigger an asthma attack in children with
asthma.
- Secondhand smoke can cause sudden infant death
syndrome and other health consequences in infants
and children.
- Separating smokers from nonsmokers, cleaning
the air, and ventilating buildings cannot eliminate
nonsmokers' exposure to secondhand smoke.
Source: U.S. Department of Health and Human
Services. The Health Consequences of Involuntary
Exposure to Tobacco Smoke: A Report of the Surgeon
General. Atlanta, GA: U.S. Department of Health
and Human Services, Centers for Disease Control
and Prevention, Coordinating Center for Health
Promotion, National Center for Chronic Disease
Prevention and Health Promotion, Office on Smoking
and Health, 2006.
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