Healton

Cultural Norms, How they have Changed and What you Can do to Help: 

Cultural Norms, How they have Changed and What you Can do to Help Cheryl G. Healton, DrPH President & CEO American Legacy Foundation April 17, 2005 Arlington, VA Smoke-Free Homes Champions Symposium

Secondhand Smoke and America’s Silent Toll: 

Secondhand Smoke and America’s Silent Toll Concern about health risks of tobacco typically focus on adult smokers but non-smokers, particularly children, are at risk for serious consequences from passive exposure through secondhand smoke. Secondhand smoke puts children at risk for: low birth weight sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) asthma, ear infection fire-related injury and death

Secondhand Smoke and America’s Silent Toll: 

Secondhand Smoke and America’s Silent Toll Despite these immense health risks, 22.5% of adult Americans - nearly 46 million people - still smoke. This presentation will cover Workplace and household smoking policies Adult attitudes toward smoking policies Youth exposure to secondhand smoke Adult believes about secondhand smoke Impact of secondhand smoke and tobacco use on children’s health

Workplace Smoking Policies: 

Workplace Smoking Policies 87% of adults in the U.S. have an official policy restricting smoking the workplace Source: Current Population Survey – Tobacco Use Supplement, 1992-2002

Workplace Smoking Policies: 

Workplace Smoking Policies Source: Current Population Survey – Tobacco Use Supplement, 2001-2002 84% of adults have a workplace policy that restricts smoking in any public area. 14% report smoking is allowed in some public areas 2% report smoking is allowed in all public areas 92% of adults work in a workplace that bans smoking in any work area. 7% report smoking is allowed in some work areas 1% report smoking is allowed in all work areas

Adult Attitudes toward Smoking at Work: 

Adult Attitudes toward Smoking at Work Source: Current Population Survey – Tobacco Use Supplement, 2001-2002

Adult Attitudes toward Smoking in Public Places - Restaurants: 

Adult Attitudes toward Smoking in Public Places - Restaurants Source: Current Population Survey – Tobacco Use Supplement, 2001-2002

Adult Attitudes toward Smoking in Public Places - Malls: 

Adult Attitudes toward Smoking in Public Places - Malls Source: Current Population Survey – Tobacco Use Supplement, 2001-2002

Home Smoking Rules: 

Home Smoking Rules Source: Current Population Survey – Tobacco Use Supplement, 2001-2002

Household Smoking Bans: 

Household Smoking Bans Source: Legacy Media Tracking Surveys 1999 and 2003

Youth Exposure to Secondhand Smoke at Home: 

Youth Exposure to Secondhand Smoke at Home In 82 percent of the cases where a young person lives with a smoker, that smoker is a parent. About 5.6 million young people between ages 12 and 17 currently live in a household with at least one parent who smokes; of these 1.3 million live in a household with two smoking parents.* Source: Legacy Media Tracking Survey, 2003. *U.S. Census Bureau – Current Population Estimates were applied to data from the LMTS 2003 to derive these numbers.

Youth Exposure to Secondhand Smoke: 

Youth Exposure to Secondhand Smoke Source: Legacy Media Tracking Surveys 1999 and 2003

Youth Exposure to Secondhand Smoke: 

Youth Exposure to Secondhand Smoke Source: Legacy Media Tracking Surveys 1999 and 2003

Adult Beliefs about Secondhand Smoke: 

Adult Beliefs about Secondhand Smoke Overall Health 70% of smokers and 92% of non-smokers believe it is harmful to a person’s health to live in a home where smoking is allowed indoors. 60% of smokers and 90% of non-smokers believe inhaling SHS can cause lung cancer in non-smokers. Source: American Smoking and Health Survey (ASHES), 2003

Adult Beliefs about Secondhand Smoke: 

Adult Beliefs about Secondhand Smoke Children’s Health 57% of all adults believe that children who live with a smokers are just as likely to develop asthma or other respiratory problems as children who live with a smoker 48% of adults believe that smoking cigarettes around a baby increases the chance the baby will die of sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) 50% of non-smokers and 37% of smokers agree with this Source: American Smoking and Health Survey (ASHES), 2003

Toll of Secondhand Smoke on Children: 

Toll of Secondhand Smoke on Children In 2001, children’s exposure to secondhand smoke accounted for for: 26,300 low birth weight births 263 cases of SIDS 300,000 cases of pediatric asthma 99,000 cases of ear infections Source: American Legacy Foundation. 2004. Secondhand Smoke Tearing Families Apart: The Health and Economic Burden of Smoking on Children. Washington, DC.

Smoking-Related Fire Deaths: 

Smoking-Related Fire Deaths In 1999, there were over 147,000 smoking-material fires caused by cigarettes. 86 young people died from smoking-material fire deaths that same year. This number largely reflects children living in households with adults who smoke. Source: Hall, JR. 2003. The Smoking-Material Fire Problem. Quincy: National Fire Protection Agency (NFPA)

Tobacco Orphans: 

Tobacco Orphans In one year, 31,000 fatherless and 12,000 motherless youth were left behind do to smoking Based on data for 1994, smoking that year caused the deaths of 44,000 men and 19,000 women between the ages of 15 and 54. Payments made to these children through Social Security will total roughly $1.4 billion. Source: Leistikow, BN, Martin, DC, Milano, CE. 2000. “Estimates of Smoking-Attributable Deaths at Ages 15-54, Motherless or Fatherless Youths, and Resulting Social Security Costs in the United Stats in 1994.” Preventive Medicine 30:353-360.

Conclusion: 

Conclusion Aside from smoking cessation, clean indoor policies are the most effective way to protect youth from the adverse health effects of secondhand smoke. Although positive changes have been made in smoking policies and reducing secondhand smoke exposure among youth, more than 4 million youth continue to be exposed in their homes. Tobacco control efforts need to promote clean indoor air policies and educate adults on the dangers of secondhand smoke exposure on others, especially children.

Secondhand Smoke Tearing Families Apart – Legacy Policy Report 2: 

Secondhand Smoke Tearing Families Apart – Legacy Policy Report 2