Smoking around kids .... how bad??

Bluemeanie_2

*Beki* wrote: »

Will probably make some people angry by posting this but I strongly believe that people who smoke shouldn't have children. It is, as you say, the same as other addictions, and nobody sane would dream of having a child whilst addicted to cocaine or any other drug. People believe that cigarettes are not as harmful but the damage to a small/unborn child can be severe. I can't believe that people who love their children so much would expose them to such a danger- it is not as if we are unaware of the risks in this day and age.

OP- good luck with sorting out your issue, I would definitely not want my child playing in the same room as someone puffing away on a cigarette. As someone who suffers from asthma I know how much smoke can affect it, and what a horrible and scary experience it is not being able to breath properly.

I don't necessarily disagree with this statement. But there are a lot of situations that I feel people shouldn't have kids in, yet they still do.

delain

Well that's one good thing if your DD won't be there anymore

OH smoked for over 20 years, but never in my house, not just because I make everyone smoke outside, but because he knows it would be disrespectful to even ask if you can smoke in a non smokers home.

OH knew I hated ex smoking around me and my older girls, and smokers around babies full stop. When I was having our first child together he stopped. That was 2 years ago and he never looked back. To me that showed a real commitment to me and the family, and I'm still proud of him for doing it

meritaten

excuse me??? smokers shouldnt be allowed to have children?
begs the question 'Who should be allowed to have children then'?
Only the 'perfect' people?
and who decides who they are?????????????

Lotus-eater

*Beki* wrote: »

:T:T

"But you didn't answer the question...." @Lotus-eater... Sadly I don't have the power to do either, but would love to take all kids away that are not being fairly treated! Very idealistic I know...

Very..

and where do you stop... from all families with a criminal record? from people who you don't agree with sexually, from people you don't agree with religiously, politically?

Personally I'd quite like to take children away from stupid people.

But then where do we put all these children with now no homes? We could have used Scotland, but it may be becoming independent.

daska

Svenena wrote: »

This article explains some of the risks of "third-hand" smoke:

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/health/children_shealth/4126202/Parents-who-smoke-only-in-garden-may-still-harm-children-doctors-warn.html

NHS The research behind this story did not actually assess the dangers of “third-hand” smoke, but instead surveyed people’s beliefs about these dangers, and whether this was related to the likelihood of banning smoking in their own homes.

li'l_p

As for the OP it's a difficult situation as you clearly see and yes you can ask but can't dictate what goes on during access visits..

I'm sorry but if my child was having access visits, then I sure as dammit would have every right to dictate what happens on those visits and have every right to say something if I wasn't happy with a particular aspect. So I take it you would say nothing if for example they watched explicit !!!!!! infront of your child, maybe have sex infront of the child, the list could go on... ok, so these aren't as damaging but equally a question of what you are allowed to exercise your rights over.

Just in answer to the actual OP's question, some stats and info (all taken from Cancer Research website http://info.cancerresearchuk.org/healthyliving/smokingandtobacco/:

Years of research have proven that smoking causes cancer. But this doesn’t mean that all smokers will definitely get cancer or that all non-smokers won’t. It means that smoking greatly increases the risk of this disease. Smokers are, on average, much more likely to get cancer than non-smokers.

Tobacco smoke contains at least 80 different cancer-causing substances as follows:

[FONT=&quot]Tar - a mixture of dangerous chemicals
Arsenic - used in wood preservatives
Benzene - an industrial solvent, refined from crude oil
Cadmium - used in batteries
Formaldehyde - used in mortuaries and paint manufacturing
Polonium-210 - a highly radioactive element
Chromium - used to manufacture dye, paints and alloys
1,3-Butadiene - used in rubber manufacturing
Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons - a group of dangerous DNA-damaging chemicals
Nitrosamines - another group of DNA-damaging chemicals
Acrolein - formerly used as a chemical weapon[/FONT]

When you inhale smoke, these chemicals enter your lungs and spread around the rest of your body.

Second-hand smoke is particularly dangerous for children because their bodies are still developing. Smoking when you are with your children can increase their risk of cot death, glue ear, respiratory illnesses such as asthma and chest infections, and possibly cancer later on in life.

There are two types of tobacco smoke:

• mainstream smoke, which is directly inhaled through the mouth end of the cigarette, and
• sidestream smoke, which comes from the burning tip of the cigarette.

Second-hand smoke consists mainly of sidestream smoke, which is about four times more toxic than mainstream smoke, although people inhale it in a more diluted form. This is because sidestream smoke contains much higher levels of many of the poisons and cancer-causing chemicals in cigarettes, including:

• up to three times as much carbon monoxide
• five times more cadmium
• 3-10 times more polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons
• 10-40 times more nitrosamines
• about 15 times more benzene
• 40-70 times more ammonia

I really could go on, I have that much info around smoking and the dangers (it is part of my job in health research for marketing) but I think most of this covers the core points.

I am glad the OP has some settlement to the situation in the ex no longer being with the partner, but for anyone else that this is perplexing to. I hope it provides facts, and it isn't just a case that people are all anti-smoking and find it to be an "unpleasant smell".

daska

li'l_p wrote: »

I really could go on, I have that much info around smoking and the dangers (it is part of my job in health research for marketing) but I think most of this covers the core points.

Please do

Especially if you have anything concrete about third hand smoke.

balletshoes

Lotus-eater wrote: »

Very..

and where do you stop... from all families with a criminal record? from people who you don't agree with sexually, from people you don't agree with religiously, politically?

Personally I'd quite like to take children away from stupid people.

But then where do we put all these children with now no homes? We could have used Scotland, but it may be becoming independent.

oi Lotus-eater - naughty naughty :eek::rotfl:!

meritaten

yes - I would be interested in the concept of 'third hand smoke' - especially as in these times if you open the window you are inviting in all manner of toxins! especially if you live in an industrialised area! how would you distinguish the toxins from industry to that of tobacco smoke - and which is most harmful?

Svenena

A research paper on "third-hand smoke":

http://www.pnas.org/content/early/2010/02/04/0912820107.short?rss=1&ssource=mfc

I agree that toxins from industrialisation are bad too, but that's not a good justification to be a smoker (eg "oh toxins are out there anyway, so my smoking doesn't matter"). Otherwise we could use the same argument not to improve the toxic-output of cars, etc.

I appreciate smoking is highly addictive and some people are unable/unwilling to quit, in which case smoking outdoors is better than smoking indoors.

I read a statistic earlier when looking into this which said that 15% of smokers don't even believe in the effects of second-hand smoke, which I thought was pretty shocking - denial at its strongest! But in the past people genuinely didn't know about the effects, and maybe in the future we'll all be horrified at the idea of people inflicting "third-hand" smoke on children, who knows?