Everyone knows that active smoking causes significant harm to human health. But only in the last few years the question has been raised that the harm of second-hand smoke is not less, or even more noticeable. The fact is that if a person is an active smoker, then it is quite easy to identify the relationship of his diseases and smoking. In the case of harm to second-hand smoke, such a connection may not occur to the specialist.
The harm of passive smoking is expressed in various diseases that develop due to the penetration of tobacco smoke and toxic substances into the body.
Firstly, the harm of secondhand smoke is the risk of developing lung cancer. Active smokers are at risk of cancer, but passive smoking can lead to the development of this pathology, since inhaled smoke contains carcinogenic compounds.
Secondly, the harm of passive smoking consists in the development of other oncological pathologies, for example, cancer of the uterine neck or bladder. According to statistics, it is in people suffering from second-hand smoke that these diseases are most often observed.
Diseases of the heart and blood vessels, as an expression of the harm of second-hand smoke. It has been proven many hundreds of times that smoking leads to the development of atherosclerosis, which manifests itself in the compaction and narrowing of arteries. The harm of second-hand smoke also involves the development of high blood pressure, which is also harmful to the health of the heart muscle. Under the influence of harmful substances of cigarette smoke in the vessels, the formation of plaques begins, which impede the transport of oxygenated blood through the veins and arteries.
In turn, oxygen deficiency arising from the depletion of blood can lead to a stroke of the brain, as a lack of oxygen or its complete absence leads to the death of the affected area of the brain.
Pathologists of lung tissue. Pathologies such as chronic asthma and bronchitis, colds and pneumonia are directly related to the dangers of secondhand smoke. If such diseases are noted in persons working or living with active smokers, then the health of the former is significantly worsened.
Passive smoking harm for children
Second-hand smoke is especially dangerous for children, since it can cause a phenomenon such as sudden infant death, that is, the phenomenon of respiratory arrest during sleep. According to the results of the study, it can be judged that when examining children who died as a result of sudden childhood death, it was found that the nicotine content in the blood of the affected children was extremely high and incompatible with life, provided the children were young. Smoking mothers put their children at risk.
Infectious diseases of the ears or otitis media are another pathology caused by the harm of secondhand smoke. Most often, otitis media in children is observed provided that both mom and dad are active smokers. Regular exposure of the child’s body to tobacco smoke leads to the formation of exudate in the middle ear. The treatment of such a pathology consists in surgical intervention, during which a puncture is performed in the eardrum to pump out the fluid and normalize the pressure. If the operation is not performed on time, the child may lose hearing.
If children are under constant exposure to cigarette smoke, then they may experience various difficulties in the respiratory process, up to the development of bronchial asthma. In addition, the harm of secondhand smoke to children is the risk of developing chronic laryngitis. The treatment of all these pathologies takes a long time, however, it is impossible to completely eliminate the harm caused by passive smoking.