[Vision2020] US Surgeon General's Report on Second Hand Smoke: Economic Impact of Smokefree Bars

[bear at moscow.com]

Ted,

Just a couple of points. First, I agree that smoking/second hand
smoke/third hand smoke is bad, OK?  But do we need another law?

And going with what you said, "Of course, there are serious ethical questions
 regarding a business that endorses addictive drug use that presents
dangerous health risks resulting in hundreds of thousands of premature
deaths, for the sake of profits" , then lets pass a law closing the bars!
 I can throw out just as many statistics on why bars should be closed
because of alcohol and all its associated dangers, but do we need more
laws?
How would you feel about passing a local law that holds responsible the
person that served the last drink to drunk drivers? Not so long ago we had
someone from one of the bars here passed out in a parking lot and run
over. Where was the hue and cry over stopping bars from selling alcohol?

All I'm saying is there is good data on why smoking is bad and why
drinking is bad, and we don't need any more "big brother" legislation
about either. There are already enough laws controlling them.





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> Some argue that smoking restrictions in bars will hurt these businesses or
> put them out of business.  Of course, there are serious ethical questions
> regarding a business that endorses addictive drug use that presents
> dangerous health risks resulting in hundreds of thousands of premature
> deaths, for the sake of profits.  But to reduce this to a purely economic
> analysis, the economic impact of a bar becoming non-smoking is not
> necessarily negative.  While those wishing to drink and smoke may not
> patronize a non-smoking bar (though they can step outside between drinks
> for
> a smoke, correct?), there are many who avoid smoking bars because of the
> smoke.  And given tobacco smoking rates have been declining in recent
> years,
> those who don't smoke and want to socialize and drink in a non-smoking bar
> should be a sizable group.
>
> But what have the studies revealed regarding the economic impact of bars
> becoming non-smoking?
>
> One of the most well known reports on this subject is a 2006 US Surgeon
> General Report on second hand smoke, that looked at the economic impacts
> of
> bars (and restaurants, hospitality businesses) becoming non-smoking, while
> also presenting a scientific case that second hand smoke is a very serious
> health risk (there is no safe level of second hand tobacco smoke, and
> systems to separate smoking and non-smoking sections in establishments are
> ineffective).  I offer a list of important medical findings (not economic)
> from this report regarding second hand smoke at the bottom.  I could not
> quickly locate the exact part of the report regarding the economic
> impacts,
> so I reference other sources to present the conclusions regarding economic
> impacts of non-smoking establishments:
>
>  The Health Consequences of Involuntary Exposure to Tobacco Smoke: A
> Report
> of the Surgeon General June 27, 2006
>
> http://www.surgeongeneral.gov/library/secondhandsmoke/
> --------------
>
> http://www.no-smoke.org/pdf/Economic_Impact.pdf
>
>>From website above:
>
> According to the 2006 US Surgeon General's Report, "The Health
> Consequences
> of Involuntary Exposure to Tobacco Smoke," adopting smokefree workplace
> policies is a wise business decision.  The results of all credible
> peer-reviewed studies show that smokefree policies and regulations do not
> have a negative impact on business revenues
> --------------
>
> http://dsc.discovery.com/news/2006/06/28/secondhandsmoke_hea.html?category=health&guid=20060628090000
>
>>From website above:
>
> And a key argument of some business owners' legal challenges to smoking
> bans
> is that smoking customers will go elsewhere, cutting their profits.
>
> But the surgeon general's report concludes that's not true. It cites a
> list
> of studies that found no negative economic impact from city and state
> smoking bans — including evidence that New York City restaurants and bars
> increased business by almost 9 percent after going smoke-free.
>
> To help make the point, Carmona's office videotaped mayors of smoke-free
> cities and executives of smoke-free companies, including the founder of
> the
> Applebee's restaurant chain, saying business got better when the haze
> cleared.
>
> --------------
>
> http://www.surgeongeneral.gov/library/secondhandsmoke/factsheets/factsheet6.html
> The Health Consequences of Involuntary Exposure to Tobacco Smoke: A Report
> of the Surgeon General, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services 6
> Major
> Conclusions of the Surgeon General Report
>
> Smoking is the single greatest avoidable cause of disease and death. In
> this
> report, *The Health Consequences of Involuntary Exposure to Tobacco Smoke:
> A
> Report of the Surgeon General*, the Surgeon General has concluded that:
>
>    1. Many millions of Americans, both children and adults, are still
>    exposed to secondhand smoke in their homes and workplaces despite
>    substantial progress in tobacco control.
>
>    Supporting Evidence
>       - Levels of a chemical called cotinine, a biomarker of secondhand
>       smoke exposure, fell by 70 percent from 1988-91 to 2001-02. In
> national
>       surveys, however, 43 percent of U.S. nonsmokers still have
> detectable levels
>       of cotinine.
>       - Almost 60 percent of U.S. children aged 3-11 years—or almost 22
>       million children—are exposed to secondhand smoke.
>       - Approximately 30 percent of indoor workers in the United States
> are
>       not covered by smoke-free workplace policies.
>
>    2. Secondhand smoke exposure causes disease and premature death in
>    children and adults who do not smoke.
>
>    Supporting Evidence
>       - Secondhand smoke contains hundreds of chemicals known to be toxic
> or
>       carcinogenic (cancer-causing), including formaldehyde, benzene,
> vinyl
>       chloride, arsenic, ammonia, and hydrogen cyanide.
>       - Secondhand smoke has been designated as a *known human
> carcinogen*(cancer-causing agent) by the U.S. Environmental Protection
> Agency, National
>       Toxicology Program and the International Agency for Research on
> Cancer
>       (IARC). The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
> has
>       concluded that secondhand smoke is an occupational carcinogen.
>
>    3. Children exposed to secondhand smoke are at an increased risk for
>    sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS), acute respiratory infections, ear
>    problems, and more severe asthma. Smoking by parents causes respiratory
>    symptoms and slows lung growth in their children.
>
>    Supporting Evidence
>       - Children who are exposed to secondhand smoke are inhaling many of
>       the same cancer-causing substances and poisons as smokers. Because
> their
>       bodies are developing, infants and young children are especially
> vulnerable
>       to the poisons in secondhand smoke.
>       - Both babies whose mothers smoke while pregnant and babies who are
>       exposed to secondhand smoke after birth are more likely to die
> from sudden
>       infant death syndrome (SIDS) than babies who are not exposed to
> cigarette
>       smoke.
>       - Babies whose mothers smoke while pregnant or who are exposed to
>       secondhand smoke after birth have weaker lungs than unexposed
> babies, which
>       increases the risk for many health problems.
>       - Among infants and children, secondhand smoke cause bronchitis and
>       pneumonia, and increases the risk of ear infections.
>       - Secondhand smoke exposure can cause children who already have
> asthma
>       to experience more frequent and severe attacks.
>
>    4. Exposure of adults to secondhand smoke has immediate adverse effects
>    on the cardiovascular system and causes coronary heart disease and lung
>    cancer.
>
>    Supporting Evidence
>       - Concentrations of many cancer-causing and toxic chemicals are
> higher
>       in secondhand smoke than in the smoke inhaled by smokers.
>       - Breathing secondhand smoke for even a short time can have
> immediate
>       adverse effects on the cardiovascular system and interferes with
> the normal
>       functioning of the heart, blood, and vascular systems in ways
> that increase
>       the risk of a heart attack.
>       - Nonsmokers who are exposed to secondhand smoke at home or at work
>       increase their risk of developing heart disease by 25 - 30 percent.
>       - Nonsmokers who are exposed to secondhand smoke at home or at work
>       increase their risk of developing lung cancer by 20 - 30 percent.
>
>    5. The scientific evidence indicates that there is no risk-free level
> of
>    exposure to secondhand smoke.
>
>    Supporting Evidence
>       - Short exposures to secondhand smoke can cause blood platelets to
>       become stickier, damage the lining of blood vessels, decrease
> coronary flow
>       velocity reserves, and reduce heart rate variability,
> potentially increasing
>       the risk of a heart attack.
>       - Secondhand smoke contains many chemicals that can quickly irritate
>       and damage the lining of the airways. Even brief exposure can result
> in
>       upper airway changes in healthy persons and can lead to more
> frequent and
>       more asthma attacks in children who already have asthma.
>
>    6. Eliminating smoking in indoor spaces fully protects nonsmokers from
>    exposure to secondhand smoke. Separating smokers from nonsmokers,
> cleaning
>    the air, and ventilating buildings cannot eliminate exposures of
> nonsmokers
>    to secondhand smoke.
>
>    Supporting Evidence
>       - Conventional air cleaning systems can remove large particles, but
>       not the smaller particles or the gases found in secondhand smoke.
>       - Routine operation of a heating, ventilating, and air conditioning
>       system can distribute secondhand smoke throughout a building.
>       - The American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and
> Air-Conditioning
>       Engineers (ASHRAE), the preeminent U.S. body on ventilation issues,
> has
>       concluded that ventilation technology cannot be relied on to
> control health
>       risks from secondhand smoke exposure.
>
> *The Health Consequences of Involuntary Exposure to Tobacco Smoke: A
> Report
> of the Surgeon General* was prepared by the Office on Smoking and Health,
> National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion,
> Centers
> for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The Report was written by 22
> national experts who were selected as primary authors. The Report chapters
> were reviewed by 40 peer reviewers, and the entire Report was reviewed by
> 30
> independent scientists and by lead scientists within the Centers for
> Disease
> Control and Prevention and the Department of Health and Human Services.
> Throughout the review process, the Report was revised to address
> reviewers’
> comments.
>
> *Citation*
> U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. *The Health Consequences of
> Involuntary Exposure to Tobacco Smoke: A Report of the Surgeon General*.
> U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Centers for Disease Control
> and Prevention, National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health
> Promotion, Office on Smoking and Health, 2006.
>
> For more information, please refer to the Resources page. Additional
> highlight sheets are also available at www.cdc.gov/tobacco.
>
> Last revised: January 4, 2007
>
> ------------------------------------------
>
> Vision2020 Post: Ted Moffett
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