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Third-Hand Smoke

February 2009

Third-Hand Smoke – The New Frontier of Tobacco Control

By: Joanne Di Nardo, MA – Manager, Government Relations and Public Affairs, Ontario Lung Association

Sitting indoors with the temperature around minus 20 degrees celsius outside, one cannot help but think about smokers and the challenges they face in weather like today. It would not seem unreasonable for a smoker to think about smoking indoors when the temperature drops to an extremely cold level. However, new research shows that smokers should think twice before making that decision to smoke indoors.

A research study published in Pediatrics (www.pediatrics.org), January 2009, looks at the health effects of “thirdhand” smoke. Thirdhand smoke is tobacco smoke that stays around after a cigarette is put out. Children are more affected by thirdhand smoke exposure for the following reasons:

• They are lower to the ground (e.g. closer to carpet fibres where smoke stays)
• They are more likely to breathe near, play on, or touch surfaces covered in smoke
• Their immune system is developing at a fast rate and is therefore more affected by toxins such as smoke
• They breathe faster than adults

The science is clear - no amount of tobacco smoke exposure is safe.

Through provincial legislation under the Smoke-Free Ontario Act, 2006, smoking is no longer allowed in public places and workplaces. Legislation banning smoking in vehicles carrying children under the age of 16 just came into effect on January 21, 2009. All of these measures help protect people from the dangerous effects of secondhand smoke. But what about protection from thirdhand smoke?

It is important that we continue to communicate the message that tobacco smoke is dangerous whether firsthand, secondhand or thirdhand. Because of this study, more smokers will think twice before lighting up in their homes and perhaps begin their first quit smoking attempt.
The Ontario Lung Association advises people not to smoke in their homes, especially in homes where there are children and more seriously, children with asthma. It is not only children who can suffer the effects of thirdhand smoke, however. Adults with asthma or other lung diseases are at risk as well.

This study helps to support the many people who have been suffering from tobacco smoke exposure in their homes. These homes may include: semi-detached homes, townhouses, apartments, condominiums, coops and public housing. We can expect more calls to The Lung Information Line at 1-888-344-5864 (LUNG) from people wanting to know how to protect themselves and their families from illness and disease because a neighbour’s tobacco smoke is permeating their home.

As the information regarding thirdhand smoke spreads, non-profit health charities like The Lung Association will be asked to respond and assist. It will be up to health organizations and medical experts to communicate the messages regarding the dangers of thirdhand smoke to the general public and decision-makers. Thirdhand smoke, if not already, will become the new secondhand smoke. This is the new challenge for tobacco control and we must prepare to battle for cleaner, healthier indoor air.

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