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According to the National Cancer Institute, there is no safe amount of secondhand smoke. Exposure to secondhand smoke has been estimated to cause 38,000 deaths and more than one million illnesses in children each year. That's why I can't believe that Utah, of all states, with its religious community that praises healthy and smoke-free lifestyles, has not yet banned smoking in vehicles when children are present.
Hopefully this situation is about to change for the better -- for the better health of Utah's children, that is.
On Tues., Jan. 22, the Utah State Senate's Health and Human Services Committee voted out of committee Senate Bill 14 with a favorable recommendation. This essentially means the committee endorsed the legislation and desire to see it come up for discussion and possible passage in this Legislative Session. SB 14 prohibits a person from smoking in a vehicle if a child under five is present and fines violators $45 unless they enroll in a smoking cessation program.
You don't have to be a smoker for smoking to harm you. You can incur breathing problems and even develop cancer with prolonged exposure to secondhand smoke, according to the National Cancer Institute. As the institute defines it, secondhand smoke is the smoke that is either exhaled by the smoker or comes from the burning end of a cigarette, cigar or pipe and is inhaled by someone else.
The known, proven side effects of secondhand smoke inhalation are horrific, ranging from respiratory problems including asthma to obesity to increased incidences of SIDS to heart and other diseases and cancer. For more information about these effects on children, visit www.tobaccofreekids.org.
When adults smoke in cars with children present, children are exposed to the carcinogenic chemicals in secondhand smoke and put at risk for all of these horrible side effects.
Most unfortunately of all, children under 5, those who would be affected by the passage of SB 14, cannot make the decision to roll down a window or not ride in a car if they do not want to breathe secondhand smoke. A child as old as 6, or school-age, might be able to ask their parents not to smoke in the car with them, but kids under 5 certainly cannot.
I was one such child. My mother smoked before she became pregnant with me, during her pregnancy and until I was a teenager. Before I even knew the medical side effects of inhaling secondhand smoke, as a child I knew that it smelled bad, made it hard for me to breathe and that I didn't want to smell it. After I found out the harmful effects of smoking for her and the harms of inhaling secondhand smoke for my brother and me, I pled with her not to smoke around us and to quit smoking entirely for all our sakes. I am extremely proud to say that my mom did quit smoking after 30 years of it, when I was about 13. I have never been so proud or loved her more for her decision to quit, for her health and ours.
When she used to smoke in the car and I was old enough to know how, I used to roll the window down and stick my nose out to try not to smell the smoke. When my mom smoked in the house, I tried to go outside. But after years of inhaling secondhand smoke, by that time, it was too late. The damage had already been done. I had already developed breathing problems that prohibited me from fulfilling my then-life's dream of serving in the U.S. Air Force. Although that was not the only side effect I suffered, I made off better than my brother. I do not smoke. I never have and never will. Unfortunately though, my brother started smoking because my mom did.
As a child (now an adult) negatively affected by years of inhaling secondhand smoke, having tried especially hard not to inhale it while in the car with my smoker mother, I could not be more pleased or appreciative of Sen. Scott McCoy, the sponsor of SB 14 who is seeking to protect children from their parents' bad decisions.
Although I hope SB 14 will pass this year, I know that all too often, big interests, such as tobacco companies, influence the outcome of politics at the expense of people who such laws would benefit because it creates a cost to the companies. So I'm hopeful, but realistic about the potential for SB 14's passage. But whether or not SB 14 passes, if you smoke, I implore you not to smoke in your car or your house if your children are with you. Don't let your bad decisions negatively affect your children now and for years to come, as my mother's decisions did.
letters@chronicle.utah.edu
