The harmful effects of passive smoking, what is dangerous and why is it harmful. Medical blog

What is passive smoking

Some medical studies say that passive smoking does not pose any danger to a non-smoker, but modern pulmonologists have long proven the opposite. At the same time, there is an opinion that non-smokers receive an even greater dose of harmful substances than smokers themselves when they inhale smoke.

A passive smoker receives all the harmful components contained in tobacco smoke in full. As for the direct smoker, his lungs receive somewhat filtered smoke, which enters there in limited portions.

It is worth noting that no modern ventilation systems protect non-smokers from smoke, since the substances released during the combustion of tobacco are quite strong. As a rule, regardless of the tobacco and cigarette manufacturer, tobacco smoke contains the following components, inhaled both during active and passive smoking:

• Carbon monoxide.
• Nitrogen oxide.
• Aldehydes.
• Cyanide.
• Acrolein.
• Nicotine.

A non-smoker, being in a room where they smoke for one hour, receives such a dose of some gaseous components, which is equivalent to the fact that he himself would smoke half a cigarette. It is easy to calculate how many conventional cigarettes such a person can smoke if he is in a place where people smoke all day long.

The Deadly Danger of Passive Smoking

Despite the fact that the topic of tobacco harm is discussed almost everywhere, few smokers think about this danger. And what is most offensive is that smoking affects people who are not involved in this habit. And, of course, children are most vulnerable to this problem, since the child's body is not able to fully produce natural lung filters.

The effects of passive smoking are divided into two groups.

The effects can be immediate.

This type of effect works instantly and can be felt after the first inhalation of tobacco smoke. The most common reaction of the body is:

• The mucous membrane of the eyes and nasopharynx is irritated.
• Dry mouth appears.
• The cardiovascular system is stressed.
• Less often, some kind of allergy may appear.

There are situations when some of these reactions can persist even for several days. In this case, a person only needs to be near an active smoker for a very short time.

There may also be delayed reactions.

In this case, the reaction may appear long after receiving a dose of smoke. These include the following diseases:

• Various diseases of the respiratory system.
• Stress, depression and oppressed state.
• Ear diseases.
• Serious allergic diseases.
• Atherosclerosis. hypertension, cardiovascular diseases.
• And, of course, lung cancer.