We have known since the 1980s that secondhand tobacco smoke causes lung cancer, but there has not been much attention to whether secondhand smoke causes other cancers that active smoking causes. I recently became aware of a well-done meta-analysis of the association between secondhand smoke and bladder cancer. (Bladder cancer is right behind lung cancerContinue reading “Secondhand smoke increases bladder cancer risk”
Category Archives: secondhand smoke
Did we just have a secondhand smoke moment for fentanyl?
From time to time public health professionals, physicians, and policy makers have asked me what lessons from tobacco control apply to the drug problem. I have had a hard time answering this question because the most important change in the tobacco debate — the emergence of the health effects of secondhand smoke and concerns byContinue reading “Did we just have a secondhand smoke moment for fentanyl?”
Smokefree laws reduce preterm births
Kristin Ashford, Ellen Hahn and their colleagues at the University of Kentucky recently published and important addition to the literature on the immediate health benefits of smokefree laws. Their paper ‘Municipal smoke-free laws and preterm birth Municipal smoke-free laws and preterm birth” cross-links 16 years of birth data in Kentucky to their database of localContinue reading “Smokefree laws reduce preterm births”
Excellent legal analysis of protecting bystanders from cannabis use in multiunit housing
Dan Orenstein recently published an excellent review and analysis of extending smokefree multiunit housing laws to include cannabis, “Multiunit Housing and Cannabis: Good Laws Make Good Neighbors.” In particular, he considers the impact of the fact that cannabis remains illegal under federal law as well as prohibited from public use even in states that haveContinue reading “Excellent legal analysis of protecting bystanders from cannabis use in multiunit housing”
Marijuana bong produces huge amounts of secondhand smoke
Anyone who has been around people smoking marijuana with a bong know that it produces a lot of secondhand smoke. Now Patton Khuu Nguyen and Kathy Hammond have shown that the amount of secondhand smoke is huge. Their paper, “Fine Particulate Matter Exposure From Secondhand Cannabis Bong Smoking” published in JAMA Network Open reports theContinue reading “Marijuana bong produces huge amounts of secondhand smoke”
Louisiana health advocates used local ordinances to win smokefree casinos and bars despite industry opposition
Tanner Wakefield and I just published Securing Smokefree Laws Covering Casinos and Bars in Louisiana via Messaging, Continuous Campaigning and Health Coalitions that describes innovative campaigns that Louisiana tobacco control advocates, in collaboration with national groups developed to successfully secure smokefree casinos in New Orleans and other cities there despite fierce industry opposition. In particular,Continue reading “Louisiana health advocates used local ordinances to win smokefree casinos and bars despite industry opposition”
Tremendous new resource on tobacco industry issue ads now available
Rob Jackler just published Propaganda Crusades by Philip Morris International & Altria: “Smoke-Free Future” & “Moving Beyond Smoke” Campaigns Exposing the Hypocrisy of the Claim: “A Tobacco Company That Actually Cares About Health,” an encyclopedic analysis of Philip Morris and Altria’s issue advertising campaigns claiming that the companies have changed from promoting death for profitContinue reading “Tremendous new resource on tobacco industry issue ads now available”
E-cigs: What about helping the smokers?
A lot of the discussion of e-cigarettes has been about the millions of youth who are starting nicotine addiction with them. While the tobacco companies are obvious beneficiaries of this fact, no one — not even the companies — publicly claims that this is a good thing. The goal is to “help addicted smokers quitContinue reading “E-cigs: What about helping the smokers?”
Onsite cannabis consumption laws rarely ensure clean indoor air
As more and more states legalize adult-use cannabis, the issue of marijuana lounges and other forms of onsite consumption have come to the fore. Like with tobacco smoke, the levels of indoor air pollution when people are smoking (or vaping) marijuana are substantial. The American Society for Heating, Refrigeration and Air Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE), whichContinue reading “Onsite cannabis consumption laws rarely ensure clean indoor air”
Long-established science supports maintaining and expanding smokefree casinos and other environments
While all commercial gaming in Atlantic City, Michigan and Pennsylvania were temporarily smokefree for a period of time because of the COVID-19 pandemic, smoking has resumed as mask mandates have expired. They did so despite the fact that the science on secondhand smoke has been well-accepted for a long time. The casinos have been encouragedContinue reading “Long-established science supports maintaining and expanding smokefree casinos and other environments”
Stanton Glantz blog 