Passive smoking and children

Every day 15 million children breathe tobacco smoke. From 9 up to 12 million of them - are children under 6 years, the most vulnerable to the harmful substances contained therein.

Passive smoking in children is directly linked with the following diseases:

* Severe asthma
* Heavy infection of the inner ear
* Respiratory Tract Infections (including pneumonia and croup)
* Sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS)
* Children's Leukemia

Each year, from 150 to 300 thousand children between the ages of 12 to 18 months are exposed to tobacco smoke. About 15 thousand of them admitted to hospital with diseases such as bronchitis or pneumonia. About 300 children die from respiratory diseases related to passive smoking, including from asthma attacks.

What is passive smoking?

Passive smoking - it is inhalation of tobacco smoke, which spreads itself around the end of a lighted cigarette, cigar or pipe, as well as the smoker himself. As cigarette smoke contains about 40 thousand chemicals, 50 of which are carcinogenic.

Why is tobacco smoke in the home is especially dangerous for children?

When passive smoking in adults, too often develop respiratory illness, but for higher risk children. Here's why:

* Lightweight children had not yet formed.
* Children inhale more air and breathe more than adults. As a result, in the same environment in their lungs gets more toxins.
* The immune system of children less than adults.
* Small children harder to leave the indoor smoke than older children or adults.

What can you do?

* Talk with your doctor how to quit smoking. There are plenty of nicotine and other drugs that can help you with this. Quitting smoking will save your child from tobacco smoke and reduce the likelihood that he will start smoking.
* Help to quit their loved ones. If you live with a smoker, ask him to give up smoking or smoking on the street.
* Do not smoke in the car.
* Make sure that the school or in other child care institution, which is visited by your child, do not smoke.
* Make sure that the babysitter the child does not smoke.
* Do not smoke near the child and do not leave burning cigarette butts in the ashtray next to him.
Rx Arkansas