There is no safe level of exposure to secondhand smoke.
Smoke and vapour-free spaces protect you, your loved ones, and your community!
What are secondhand smoke and aerosol (vapour)?
Secondhand smoke (SHS) is created when a cigarette (or other lit commercial tobacco product) is burned and breathed out by someone who is smoking. Secondhand vapour (which is actually an aerosol) is what is breathed out when someone is using an e-cigarette (or other vapour device).
The chemicals in secondhand smoke or aerosol vary based on the product used (cigarette, e-cigarette, cannabis, etc.) and whether the product is heated or burned.
When it comes to secondhand smoke, you can usually see or smell the smoke but what you can't see is the 7,000+ chemicals in the smoke including 70 that cause cancer. Secondhand smoke is filled with toxic chemicals like formaldhyde, benzene, chromium, nickel, vinyl chloride, arsenic, and carbon monoxide. There is no safe level of exposure.
Children are especially at risk from exposure to SHS because:
- they breathe more air relative to body weight and as a result absorb more tobacco smoke toxins;
- their immune systems are less protective; and
- they often can't speak for themselves or their complaints are ignored by adults.
Among children, exposure to SHS has been linked to Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS); croup, pneumonia, tonsilitis; middle ear infections; increased asthma attacks and severity; childhood cancers and leukemia; slower growth; and poor attention span.
We don't know as much about secondhand aerosol (vapour) yet, but we do know the aerosol exhaled is NOT just harmless water vapour. It's a mixture of many small particles and chemicals, which is not safe for lungs to inhale.
Provincial laws and smoke and vapour-free policies help protect you, your loved ones, and your community from secondhand smoke and aerosol. Further, federal laws regulate smoke-free and vape-free spaces in federally-regulated public places and workplaces in our communities and municipal bylaws are often in place to protect residents and visitors from the harms of smoking and vaping.