Public smoking is killing nonsmokers [Archives:2008/1127/Community]
By: Barkat Al-Taib Al_Ahmar
With more than 4,000 chemicals in cigarettes – 43 of which are known cancer-causing agents – smoking affects not just smokers themselves, but nonsmokers too in the form of secondhand smoke.
Nonsmokers breathe in secondhand smoke in numerous ways, but here in Sana'a, transportation is the main way of coming into contact with secondhand smoke.
If one wishes to travel from Bab Al-Yemen to Hayel Street, you'll likely take a bus and buses don't enforce smoking regulations, as evidenced by sometimes more than three people smoking on the same bus. Even if the bus is empty and only the driver is smoking, you'll still breathe in his smoke.
While Yemen does have laws against smoking on public transportation, they aren't enforced, unlike in other countries, such as England, where if someone smokes on public transportation, the government can impose a GBP50 fine (approximately YR 19,500).
Smoking causes millions of deaths each year. Every five minutes, someone dies as a result of smoking, which is the amount of time it takes to smoke one cigarette.
Smoking increases the pulse rate and blood pressure.
This also affects blood circulation, putting extra strain on the heart, which can lead to heart attack or possibly death.
Because smoking affects blood circulation, it also decreases the blood supply to the hands and feet; thus, heavy smokers run the risk of having to amputate their feet or legs.
Smokers don't always know the content of cigarettes and what effect it has on them or those around them, so here's a list of some substances found in cigarettes:
TAR: A black substance that adheres to the lungs, it's now certain that tar is carcinogenic (i.e., it causes cancer).
NICOTINE: A highly addictive drug, once the body becomes accustomed to nicotine, it's extremely difficult to do without it.
CARBON MONOXIDE: Cigarette smoke contains the same gas emitted from vehicle exhausts, carbon monoxide, which prevents oxygen from entering the blood.
Smokers might not realize that they must think about other people or children who may become sick because of their smoke. Traveling with a smoker for five or 10 minutes within Sana'a is bad enough, but traveling with a smoker for four to five hours between Sana'a and Taiz or Hodeidah is simply awful.
This problem came to my attention because of my friend, who is a nonsmoker. After often sitting near smokers in public, he developed a frequent cough and felt like something was wrong in his chest and heart.
Upon going to the hospital to determine what was wrong with him, the doctor was surprised to hear that he was a nonsmoker because his lungs looked exactly like a smoker's lungs. Thus, the doctor diagnosed him as a “passive smoker” or one who inhales others' smoke involuntarily.
My friend's health problems aren't his fault because he's not damaging himself; rather, someone else's behavior is causing his illness. For this reason, I advise anyone sitting near a smoker to politely ask him or her to stop.
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