Passive smoking

Passive smoking is the involuntary inhalation of smoke from the cigarettes of one or more smokers. It poses a genuine threat to health. Cigarette smoke is harmful not only to smokers, but also to non-smokers.

The ban on smoking in public places is an effective way of combating passive smoking.

According to the French National Academy of Medicine (Académie nationale de médecine), tobacco smoke is 'the most dangerous source of indoor air pollution, due to the high concentration of toxic products, but also because we are exposed to it at all ages and for much longer periods than is the case for outdoor atmospheric pollution'.

What is dangerous about passive smoking is the cumulative exposure over the course of a day and, in particular, over the course of our lives.

Risks for the foetus

Passive smoking has the same effects as active smoking on the foetus.

Smoking in the presence of a pregnant woman increases the risk of:

• the baby having a low birth weight,
• sudden infant death syndrome.

Risks for young children

Besides irritating the eyes, nose and throat, smoking in the presence of a young child increases the risk of:

• ear infections and nasopharyngitis in children,
• conditions of the digestive system (gastroenteritis),
• asthma and allergy attacks.

Children are more vulnerable, as their lungs are smaller and their immune system is less developed than that of adults. Because they breathe more quickly and have weaker defences, they inhale a greater quantity of harmful substances relative to their size.

Risks for adolescents and adults

Passive smoking can cause or aggravate numerous diseases in adolescents and adults, such as:

• respiratory diseases,
• asthma attacks,
• strokes,
• coronary events and heart diseases,
• lung cancers.

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