We’ve all heard that secondary smoke can be deadlier than the smoke the actual smoker breathes. This is because second hand smoke is made from a mixture of two forms of tobacco smoke; the side-stream smoke and the main-stream smoke. The side-stream smokes are those that come directly from lighted cigarette, cigar or pipe. The main-stream smokes are those that are exhaled by the smoker.

The person who is exposed to secondary smoke becomes a passive or involuntary smoker. The passive smokers also get to share the nicotine the real smokers do.

Secondary smoke is also dangerous because it has been classified as Group A carcinogen. This means that it can cause cancer in humans as well. The second hand tobacco smoke contains 4,000 chemical compounds, 60 of which are known to cause cancer.

In the United States alone second hand smoke has been known to cause the following problems.

There are 35,000 to 40,000 people who die from heart disease who are not smokers. 3,000 people die from lung cancer without smoking. Non-smokers also develop respiratory problems such as phlegm, cough, chest discomfort and lung function problems.

About 7,500 to 15,000 children who get affected by secondary smoke (younger than 18 months of age) are brought to hospitals. This is due to lower respiratory infections. Children who are already suffering form asthma also worsen their situation when exposed to secondary smoke.

Secondary smoke becomes a problem in three places. The workplace, public places and even your house could be a place of threat to secondary smokes. Avoiding smoke in public places will be such a hard task. Even though there are places designated for smoking people. There is always a chance that they smoke outside that place. The most important place however to make smoke free is your own home. This is especially true if you have children.

After all the research done about secondary here are some conclusions experts have made out of it. It can definitely cause diseases, which includes lung cancer to non-smokers. Children whose parents smoke constantly develop more respiratory problems. When you separate the smokers from the non-smokers, but still are in the same place. It does not eliminate the threat or the exposure of the non-smokers.

If you are a non-smoker, and is now worried to the point of panicking towards your house or a place that smells like an ashtray. Fear not, cigarette odor hasn’t been known to cause any problems. The only problem it gives is that it will make you stink.

If you are a smoker and really care about people around you; try to reduce smoking or smoke away from them as much as possible.