Role of Second Hand Smoking in Cancer
Our today’s blog is an answer to the question that does second-hand smoke cause Cancer. The Smoking industry is more than a billion-dollar industry in the world today. The strangest thing about this world is that harmful things are favored more than the things that really matter. Anyway, we all have heard of smoking. You can see your relatives, friends, people in public places, transportation systems feeling superb by puffing out the strange smelling gases. That smoke is irritating for all of those who don’t smoke at all. It is not only irritating but also very harmful. In this article we will tell you about second-hand smoke, does second-hand smoking causes cancer? And many more things….
What is Passive or Second-Hand Smoking?
In simple terms, indirect smoking is passive smoking. Have you ever been alongside a person smoking and that too directly into your face? And you would have inhaled that smoke and felt like blowing off that person’s face! Passive smoking is also called second-hand smoking in which the non-smoking person inhales the smoker’s smoke. Irritating right? We have all been through that. Passive smoking should not be taken lightly, it is equally harmful to both the smokers and the nonsmokers.
There are two types of smoke-
- Main Stream – is directly inhaled from cigarettes mouth end
- Side Stream– comes from the cigarette burning tip
Second-hand smoke is the mixture of the two and is said to be more harmful.
Does Second Hand Smoke Cause Cancer?
If you are frequently a victim of second-hand smoking, then you are very vulnerable to this life-threatening disease. It is not like, today you came into contact with the smoke for a few seconds and the same thing repeated after several months and you will be attacked by a serious disease. For nonsmokers, that experience is always annoying, and it is very harmful to small babies even if it is a few seconds of experience. But if the act is being repeated every day, i.e. suppose you need to travel daily for work in the morning and there is this person whose work timing matches with yours and he/she daily smokes in front of you before catching the bus. Now, that is dangerous, and chances are high that you can be infected with cancer. Now you know how can second-hand smoking causes cancer even if no one smokes in your house!
How Can Second Hand Smoking Cause Cancer?
But How Can Second Smoking causes Cancer? As mentioned earlier, if you are constantly inhaling the smoke very often then you are inhaling chemicals like arsenic, benzene, ethylene oxide, toluene and many more which are the agents that can cause cancer. You won’t believe, there are more than 7000 chemicals present in second-hand smoke and 250 are considered harmful according to National Cancer Institute. So, you can say second-hand smoking causes cancer with the aid of 250 harmful chemicals!
What Type of Cancer can Second-Hand Smoke Cause?
By now you must have realized that passive smoking causes cancer, but the question remains -what kind of? The answer is- Nonsmokers who are inhaling the harmful smoke unintentionally pose the same risk of getting lung cancer as the mainstream smoker. If you are living with a smoker then chances of getting a lung cancer increases by 30%.
How Long Does it Take to develop Cancer Cells in Passive Smokers?
No straightforward answer for the duration of developing cancer cells in second-hand smokers. But there are some reports that give some idea about developing cancer cells in second-hand smokers. According to ncbi, if a person between age 0-25 is exposed to SHS(Second-hand Smoke) then the risk of getting lung cancer is higher than the person who was exposed to SHS later in life.
Cancer by Passive Smoking in Children
If not today, but it will surely capture your child’s health soon. Children are at a higher risk of getting infected with cancer and other harmful condition because they are still growing. Infants can be a victim of SIDs (Sudden Infant Death Syndrome). Children who are frequently exposed to second-hand smoke will wheeze and cough more. They will have fluidic ears, children with asthmas can get themselves in serious trouble. People smoking in front of children should realize that passive smoking causes cancer and should at least avoid smoking during that time.
How to Avoid Second-Hand Smoking
#1 Say “NO SMOKING” to people smoking in your home premises.
#2 If they are smoking in your car, simply ask them to throw it away.
#3 Avoid going to restaurants where smoking is allowed.
#4 If you are a smoker, you should be wise enough to decide what is good for and for your family.
#5 If possible cover your mouth and nose while going out.
#6 If you are traveling in an unknown city and someone is smoking near you, ask them politely to stop it, if they don’t agree, stay away from them and you can also warn them not to smoke in a public place as it is prohibited as per Indian Law.
Curious children always ask this question- Why do people smoke knowing that it is harmful? The answers should be straightforward.
- People think that it is fun to smoke but actually that damages our health.
- Many youngsters think that they look smart while smoking. However, the act of smoking is not good from any angle. It puts our lungs at risk and also disturbs the people who are closeby the smoker.
- Smoking is an addiction.
- Many times, people start smoking just because of peer pressure. Hence, by giving such answers to the curious questions of children, you can aware them about the bad effects of smoking.
And why does not the government do anything about that? Say, it is a billion-dollar industry. And if the kid asks should I also be smoking then? Do not answer yes or no. Simply say it is your choice. By doing this you will make the kid think. And that is what will matter, deep thinkers will make wise choices. Plenty of campaigns have been set up to make people quit smoking but it is not enough because no one wants to think and make changes for betterment. So, now if we start from the root level i.e. from the absolute young generation, triggering in them the ways to think differently, things might change! Hope you know understand completely that does second-hand smoke causes cancer or not!
Also Read Our Blog on Alcohol and Cancer to know about alcohol and cancer relationship
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