We received a call at the National Council Against Smoking earlier this week from a very distressed father whose 3 year old daughter had tried a hookah at a relative's house. This is problematic on a number of levels - it is illegal for any adult to supply tobacco to a child under 18 and hookahs contain tobacco -it is especially bad for children to try hookahs as their lungs are still developing - tobacco in hookahs is the same as tobacco in cigarettes and can result in cancer, lung damage, heart disease and TB ,-sharing a hookah pipe can spread herpes -hookahs are addictive and still have nicotine in the smoke Maybe the relative who let the 3 year old try the hookah didn't know how dangero
39% of e-cigarette users are using them to take illegal drugs according to research by a group of public health experts based at Guy's and St Thomas' NHS Foundation Trust in London.They warned that too little is known about the risks of taking drugs in this way and could result in overdoses. Electronic cigarettes are being modified and used to vape illegal substances like cannabis, crack cocaine, ecstasy and heroin as part of a disturbing new drugs culture. "This novel culture could increase the prevalence of use, decrease the age of onset of use and lead to more problematic use of cannabis and other recreational drugs via vaping devices" . For the full article, click here
We all know that first-hand smoke is smoke inhaled by a smoker and that second-hand smoke is the exhaled smoke of the smoker which affects people around the the smoker, but what is third-hand smoke? Third-hand smoke is the second-hand smoke that gets left on the surfaces of objects which ages over time and becomes more and more toxic. "Third-hand smoke is a potential health threat to children, spouses of smokers and workers in environments where smoking is, or has been, allowed. Contamination of the homes of smokers by third-hand smoke is high, both on surfaces and in dust, including children's bedrooms. Third-hand smoke, which contains strong carcinogens, has been found to persist in hous
Earlier this year I fulfilled a dream – design and produce a T-shirt with messages around reducing the effects of passive smoking on children in Cape Town. We see so much pneumonia, wheezing and uncontrolled asthma produced or aggravated through children being exposed to cigarette smoke in the home. 42% of adult men in the Western Cape smoke and 25% of women – those are the highest figures on the country. So in March I got the T-shirts made and started to wear one. I have started to give child-sized ones to some of my patients with respiratory problems. I believe that we can empower children to stand up for their right to clean air. ‘Look after little lungs’ is my slogan. This is on the fron
Heart disease and smoking are the leading causes of death associated with a range of health conditions, which include cancer and respiratory diseases. ""Life expectancy in Nigeria is growing, but people in many other sub-Saharan African countries are living longer, healthier lives". Nigeria has a higher life expectancy than South Africa, Niger, or Cameroon, but it lags behind Kenya, Rwanda, and Ethiopia. These exemplar countries may provide information on successful policies that have helped accelerate progress on health. About 19 percent of deaths were from communicable diseases, maternal diseases, neonatal diseases and nutritional diseases. Deaths from that mosquito-borne disease have incr