Passive Smoking Can Be More Damaging To Your Health Than You Might Think
Considering the clear risks associated with smoking, choosing not to do it is just good sense. But, even if youve never smoked, you may still be at risk for conditions caused by secondhand smoke.
Breathing secondhand smoke, which is the combination of smoke exhaled by smokers and smoke emitted from the lit end of a cigarette, cigar, pipe or hookah , can damage your health.
Many smokers have the misconception that smoking is a personal choice that harms only themselves, says Ching-Fei Chang, MD, a pulmonologist at Keck Medicine of USC and clinical associate professor of medicine at the Keck School of Medicine of USC. But, even if youre an innocent bystander, exposure to secondhand and thirdhand smoke can increase your risk for lung cancer, heart disease and stroke by 20-30%.
How Can Bladder Cancer Be Prevented
Can Bladder Cancer Be Prevented?Dont smoke. Smoking is thought to cause about half of all bladder cancers. Limit exposure to certain chemicals in the workplace. Workers in industries that use certain organic chemicals have a higher risk of bladder cancer. Drink plenty of liquids. Eat lots of fruits and vegetables.
Secondhand Smoke Causes Sids
Sudden Infant Death Syndrome is the sudden, unexplained, unexpected death of an infant in the first year of life. SIDS is the leading cause of death in otherwise healthy infants.6 Secondhand smoke increases the risk for SIDS.2,4
- Smoking by women during pregnancy increases the risk for SIDS.2,4,7
- Infants who are exposed to secondhand smoke after birth are also at greater risk for SIDS.2,4
- Chemicals in secondhand smoke appear to affect the brain in ways that interfere with its regulation of infants breathing.2,4
- Infants who die from SIDS have higher concentrations of nicotine in their lungs and higher levels of cotinine than infants who die from other causes.2,4
Parents can help protect their babies from SIDS by taking the following three actions:8
- Do not smoke during pregnancy.
- Do not smoke or allow smoking in your home or around your baby.
- Place your baby on his or her back for all sleep timesnaps and at night.
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How Is Secondhand Smoke Exposure Measured
Secondhand smoke exposure can be measured by testing indoor air for respirable suspended particles or individual chemicals such as nicotine or other harmful and potentially harmful constituents of tobacco smoke .
Exposure to secondhand smoke can also be evaluated by measuring the level of biomarkers such as cotinine in a nonsmokers blood, saliva, or urine . Nicotine, cotinine, and other chemicals present in secondhand smoke have been found in the body fluids of nonsmokers exposed to secondhand smoke.
Women At Increasing Risk
Even though the prevalence of bladder cancer is higher among men, rates of the disease in women have grown. Dr. Abouassaly attributes this to increases in smoking among women, particularly younger women.
Previous studies indicated that smoking was responsible for 28% of bladder cancer cases in women however, NIH research found the risk for women has risen to 50%, equal to that of men.
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Is It Hard To Quit Smoking After Bladder Cancer
It is hard to quit smoking, but you can do it. Think about the health benefits of quitting after your bladder cancer diagnosis such as: Improved sense of taste and smell and the gradual disappearance of that smokers cough. Healthier lungs, heart and blood vessels. Lower risk of recurrence of bladder and other cancers.
Causes And Risk Factors Of Bladder Cancer
While bladder cancer is not 100% preventable, you may be surprised to learn there are some things you can do to lower your risk of developing it, like quitting smoking. That being said, not all causes of bladder cancer are within your control, like a genetic predisposition for the disease.
However, risk factorswhether or not they are in your controldo not completely predict your likelihood that you will get bladder cancer. In other words, just because you smoke or just because you have a family history of bladder cancer does not mean you will definitively get it.
At the same time, your risk of developing bladder cancer is not zero just because you do not smoke or do not have a family history.
Ultimately, your risk of developing bladder cancerlike the vast majority of cancersstems from a complex interaction between your genes and your environment.
Verywell
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Bladder Cancer Risk Factors
A risk factor is anything that affects your chance of getting a disease such as cancer. Different cancers have different risk factors. You can change some risk factors, like smoking or weight others, like your age or family history, you cant.
But having a risk factor, or even many, does not mean that you will get the disease. Many people with risk factors never get bladder cancer, while others with this disease may have few or no known risk factors.
Still, its important to know about the risk factors for bladder cancer because there may be things you can do that might lower your risk of getting it. If you’re at higher risk because of certain factors, you might be helped by tests that could find it early, when treatment is most likely to be effective.
Many risk factors make a person more likely to develop bladder cancer.
How Does It Cause Cancer
When you breathe it in, the smoke and its toxic chemicals go deep into your lungs and damage the lining. Smoke irritates your airways every time you breathe it in. And it starts working as soon as you inhale.
At first, your body may be able to repair the damage. But if youâre around secondhand smoke for a long time, your body may not be able to fix it any longer. Cells in your lung tissue start to act in an abnormal way, and then they form tumors, or cancer.
The longer youâre around it, the more likely you are to get cancer. Itâs hard to say exactly how much. Many things, like the mix of chemicals you breathe in and how strong they are, play a role. But if you live with a smoker, your odds for lung cancer go up 20%-30%
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What Is Bladder Cancer
Bladder cancer is the uncontrolled growth of abnormal cells in the bladder leading to the formation of a tumour.
Over time, the tumour may penetrate the bladder lining and invade the surrounding muscle layers.
Symptoms include the appearance of blood in the urine and more frequent and painful urination.
Tumours caught at an early stage can be treated with surgery or chemotherapy. Advanced cases of bladder cancer may require the removal of the bladder, with an external drainage bag or internal reservoir to aid in urination.
Can Secondhand Smoke Cause Cancer
Secondhandsmoke The exhaled out smoke that the burning end of the cigarette belches out.
The government these days, have made the no smoking rule quite evident. Go to a theatre you are reminded not to smoke, see all the posters in the road again verbalizing the agenda to leave smoking!
We have now and again heard, Cigarette smoking is injurious to health, or Smoking causes cancer.
No one pays heed to the warning signs, that is depicted in the cigarette packets too!
An active smoker is constantly derided for his smoking habits. Even after knowing the health risks like heart disease, lung cancer, etc, he is unable to sway his addictions.
Butwhataboutthenonsmokers?? Of course they know the adversities of the toxic chemicals present in a cigarette. So, as a natural instinct they avoid smoking, they, even urge there family and friends to quit tobacco products.
Ironically, did you know: Passive smokers have the same harmful health effects as smoking!!
Questions that you may be tripping over now are:
What are the chances of getting cancer from second hand smoke? What types of cancer can second hand smoke cause?
Here are the effects of second hand smoke-
All these debasing health dangers occur from one source, i.e. Tobacco!
You may also wonder,
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Which Cancers Are Associated With Secondhand Smoke
Inhaling secondhand smoke causes lung cancer in nonsmokers. Some research also suggests that secondhand smoke may increase the risk of breast cancer, nasal sinus cavity cancer, and nasopharyngeal cancer in adults and leukemia, lymphoma, and brain tumors in children, although more research is needed on this subject.
What Is The Survival Rate Of Bladder Cancer
The general 5-year survival rate for people with bladder cancer is 77%. However, survival rates depend on many factors, including the type and stage of bladder cancer that is diagnosed. The 5-year survival rate of people with bladder cancer that has not spread beyond the inner layer of the bladder wall is 96%.
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Does Secondhand Smoke Affect Blood Vessels
Breathing secondhand smoke interferes with the normal functioning of the heart, blood, and vascular systems in ways that increase the risk of having a heart attack. Even brief exposure to secondhand smoke can damage the lining of blood vessels and cause your blood platelets to become stickier. These changes can cause a deadly heart attack.
Chronic Bladder Irritation And Infections
Urinary infections, kidney and bladder stones, bladder catheters left in place a long time, and other causes of chronic bladder irritation have been linked to bladder cancer . But its not clear if they actually cause bladder cancer.
Schistosomiasis , an infection with a parasitic worm that can get into the bladder, is also a risk factor for bladder cancer. In countries where this parasite is common , squamous cell cancers of the bladder are much more common. This is an extremely rare cause of bladder cancer in the United States.
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Preventing Smoking And Bladder Cancer Problems
Fortunately, smoking is a risk factor you can control. Taking action to quit now will reduce the likelihood of you developing bladder cancer later.
What Is Being Done To Reduce Nonsmokers Exposure To Secondhand Smoke
On the federal level, several policies restricting smoking in public places have been implemented. Federal law prohibits smoking on airline flights, interstate buses, and most trains. Smoking is also prohibited in most federal buildings by Executive Order 13058 of 1997. The Pro-Children Act of 1994 prohibits smoking in facilities that routinely provide federally funded services to children. The Department of Housing and Urban Development published a final rule in December 2016, which was fully implemented in July 2018, that prohibits the use of cigarettes, cigars, pipes, and hookah in public housing authorities, including all living units, indoor common areas, and administrative offices, as well as outdoor areas within 25 feet of buildings.
Many state and local governments have enacted laws that prohibit smoking in workplaces and public places, including restaurants, bars, schools, hospitals, airports, bus terminals, parks, and beaches. These smokefree policies have substantially decreased exposure to secondhand smoke in many U.S. workplaces . More than half of all states have implemented comprehensive smokefree laws that prohibit smoking in indoor areas of workplaces, restaurants, and bars, and some states and communities also have enacted laws regulating smoking in multi-unit housing and cars . The American Nonsmokers’ Rights Foundation provides a list of state and local smokefree air policies.
Selected References
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Is Smoking A Risk Factor For Bladder Cancer
Learn about the risks of smoking and bladder cancer and take charge of your health. Many people do not realize that smoking tobacco is the single most important known risk factor for bladder cancer. Smoking is estimated to contribute to 50% of bladder tumors. Current smokers are at higher risk than former smokers.
You Might Not Realize Youre Being Exposed
A smoker doesnt have to live with someone, or even be directly in front of them, to be exposed to secondhand smoke, Chang warns.
Nonsmokers can be exposed to secondhand smoke that travels through ventilation shafts in multiunit apartments, workplaces and college lecture halls.
Despite the fact that California and 26 other states have banned smoking in public places, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports that 1 out of 4 nonsmoking Americans is still exposed to secondhand smoke. Unfortunately, theyre often unaware, when it happens, she says.
Another potential health threat, Chang adds, is thirdhand smoke, which is linked to the tobacco residue that clings to the clothes, hair and skin of smokers. It can be very difficult to remove.
The persistent, stale odor is just the tip of the iceberg, she says. Particulate matter can linger on surfaces of furniture, walls and carpeting for months to years.
This particulate matter can combine with other chemicals to form toxins, long after the smoke is gone.
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How Does Smoking Increase The Risk Of Bladder Cancer
Some of the chemicals contained in tobacco smoke cause, initiate or promote cancer.6,7 These chemicals cause genetic changes in cells of the bladder which can lead to the development of bladder cancer.
These chemicals or their metabolites are passed along the urinary tract and are stored in the bladder prior to urination. Over time, they may damage the lining of the bladder, leading to cancer.2
Secondhand Smoke And Health Risks
Secondhand smoke includes both the smoke from the end of a burning cigarette or cigar and also the smoke exhaled by the smoker. Secondhand smoke can also be called passive smoking, involuntary smoking, or environmental tobacco smoke. People may be exposed to secondhand smoke by people they live or work with, or in social settings like bars or restaurants
Cigar smoke gives off much greater amounts of secondhand smoke because cigars contain more tobacco than cigarettes and burn longer than cigarettes. Secondhand smoke can be harmful in many ways. It can cause premature death and disease in children and adults who do not smoke. Secondhand smoke is particularly harmful to children. Children exposed to secondhand smoke are at an increased risk of sudden infant death syndrome , acute respiratory infections, ear problems, and more severe asthma. Smoking by parents causes breathing symptoms and slows lung growth in their children.
In addition to all these health problems, exposure to secondhand smoke can increase a person’s risk of developing lung cancer. Ten to fifteen percent of lung cancers diagnosed in never-smokers are attributed to secondhand smoking. This exposure has also been associated with increased risk for cancers of the mouth, throat, voice box, pancreas, bladder, kidney, cervix, and childhood leukemias.
Learn more about the dangers of secondhand smoke from the American Cancer Society and the National Cancer Institute.
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Its Dangerous For Kids And Pets
Babies and children who live with smokers can get childhood cancers like leukemia, lymphoma, liver cancer, and brain tumors. Secondhand smoke is also linked to sudden infant death syndrome, or SIDS, in babies. Pregnant moms exposed to secondhand smoke may have babies with low birth weight.
Itâs bad for growing kids who spend a lot of time inside the house. It can slow lung development and lead to ear or lung infections. They might have breathing problems, a chronic cough, or just get sick more often than their friends.
Dogs are more likely to get lung and nasal cancer. Cats have higher chances of getting lymphoma and oral cancer. Even pet birds can also get lung cancer if someone smokes in the house.
How To Avoid Second
#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 dont 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.
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