Smoking only harms your lungs? Wrong! It also harms…

Expert of this article: Huang Yao, Master of Pediatrics, First Affiliated Hospital of Dalian Medical University

This article was reviewed by Li Congzhe, Associate Chief Physician, Department of Pediatrics, Tangshan Central Hospital

Smoky

It always gives people a feeling of being in a fairyland

But if this smoke is from cigarettes

It's not wonderful at all.

We all know that smoking is harmful to health

But many people can't refuse

When you are smoking

Your family and friends

There is a possibility of suffering more harm

Especially children

Studies have shown that about 40% of children worldwide are exposed to secondhand smoke; approximately 65,000 children die each year from diseases caused by secondhand smoke exposure.

In my country, there are more than 300 million smokers, and more than 700 million people are frequently exposed to secondhand smoke, resulting in about 100,000 deaths from secondhand smoke each year, and 182 million children are exposed to the hazards of secondhand smoke every day.

Children are at a critical stage of growth and development. Their nervous system, endocrine system, etc. are not fully developed and their immune function is unstable, making it easier for harmful substances in tobacco to accumulate in their bodies.

Among the more than 7,000 chemical components in tobacco smoke, there can be hundreds of harmful substances, mainly inhalable particulate matter, nicotine, carbon monoxide, carbon dioxide, nitrogen dioxide and acrolein. At least 69 harmful substances are known carcinogens that can cause serious harm to human health.

The content of some harmful substances in secondhand smoke is higher than that in firsthand smoke. For example, nitrosamines (strong carcinogens) are 50 times higher than those in firsthand smoke. The International Agency for Research on Cancer has classified secondhand smoke as a human carcinogen and confirmed that it is closely related to the incidence of lung cancer.

Since China's tobacco consumption and number of smokers are extremely large, the impact on children is even more serious in our country.

What harm does secondhand smoke do to children?

Secondhand smoke not only causes cancer, but is also closely related to other non-malignant childhood diseases.

Respiratory tract infections

Children's bronchial tubes are straighter than those of adults, which makes it easier for harmful substances in secondhand smoke to pass through their respiratory tracts and accumulate in the alveoli.

asthma

The probability of asthma in children exposed to passive smoking is 2.51 times higher than that of children without passive smoking. The toxicity of smoke emitted by passive smoking is often higher than that inhaled by smokers themselves, which reduces children's lung function and weakens their responsiveness to drugs. Pregnant women smoking during pregnancy or passive smoking increase the incidence of asthma in newborns.

Secretory otitis media

The harmful substances in tobacco can directly damage the mucosa and destroy the clearance mechanism of the middle ear, thereby increasing the probability of damage, infection and allergic inflammation of the Eustachian tube mucosa. Children's Eustachian tube mucosa and cilia are more susceptible to damage than adults. This disease is an important cause of hearing loss in children.

Poor concentration

Studies have shown that passive smoking can cause children's blood lead levels to rise, leading to lead poisoning. Lead poisoning is one of the causes of children's attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, the main manifestation of which is inattention. At the same time, the damage of nicotine and other substances to the central nervous system may also cause children's inattention.

hypertension

Current research generally believes that secondhand smoke can change the structure and function of children's arteries, thereby causing an increase in blood pressure. Even short-term passive smoking can have an effect on raising blood pressure. A US study showed that tobacco exposure increases the risk of hypertension in white children and adolescents by 60%.

Tooth decay

Secondhand smoke can make the surface of children's deciduous teeth contain a large amount of nicotine derivatives, and can also reduce the vitamin level in the body, reduce children's immunity, and cause children's mouths to become dry, so that saliva cannot neutralize the lactic acid produced by sweets, leading to tooth decay. In addition, secondhand smoke can also affect the oral flora and affect the mineralization process of teeth, thereby aggravating tooth decay.

Height influence

Studies have found that newborns whose mothers smoked during pregnancy, whether actively or passively, can significantly reduce their birth height. In addition, smoke is very likely to affect children's appetite, further affecting their growth and development.

How to stay away from the harm of secondhand smoke?

Create a smoke-free family: Parents should quit smoking on their own initiative. Not only should they not smoke in front of their children, they should also reduce the number of times they smoke at home and discourage relatives and friends from smoking at home.

Healthy lifestyle: Children can eat more vegetables and fruits rich in vitamin C. Vitamin C has antioxidant function and plays a certain role in reducing the harm of cigarettes; drink more water, exercise more, and accelerate the excretion of harmful substances.

Wash clothes frequently and clean furniture regularly: We should not ignore the harm of third-hand smoke. Third-hand smoke refers to the cigarette smell and harmful particles left in the smoker's hair, clothes, furniture, and corners of the home. After being inhaled into the body, it can also cause various discomforts. Therefore, it is necessary to remove the cigarette particles left on clothes, furniture, etc. to reduce the possibility of children inhaling them.

Health education: Parents need to teach children to protect their own health, recognize the harm of smoking and secondhand smoke from an early age, refuse to smoke when they grow up, and stay away from places of passive smoking in daily life.

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