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<p>Exposure to secondhand smoke is a serious health hazard. More than 50 carcinogens
have been identified in secondhand smoke.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p>The report
of the United States Surgeon General titled “<em>The health consequences of involuntary
exposure to tobacco smoke”</em> concluded that secondhand smoke causes premature death
and disease in children and adults who do not smoke. The scientific evidence indicates
that there is no risk-free level of exposure to secondhand smoke. Children exposed
to secondhand smoke are at an increased risk for sudden infant death syndrome, acute
respiratory infections, ear problems and more severe asthma. Smoking by parents causes
respiratory symptoms and slows lung growth in children. Exposure of adults to secondhand
smoke has immediate adverse effects on the cardiovascular system and causes coronary
heart disease and lung cancer. Legislation to stop smoking in vehicles carrying children
will come into force in England on 1 October 2015.</p><p> </p><p><br /> The report
of the Royal College of <ins class="ministerial">Physicians </ins><del class="ministerial">Surgeons</del>
titled “<em>Going smoke-free: The medical case for clean air in the home, at work
and in public places”</em> included estimates that secondhand smoke exposure caused
approximately 12<del class="ministerial">2</del>,200 deaths in the United Kingdom
in 2003, and that the majority of these deaths occurred as a result of exposure to
secondhand smoke in the home. These estimates were made prior to the introduction
of smokefree legislation in England in 2007. Over the past decade, the proportion
of smokers who say that they do not smoke in the home has increased.</p><p> </p><p>
</p><p> </p><p>The evidence is clear that smokefree legislation in England has had
beneficial effects on health, as set out in the report “<em>The Impact of smokefree
legislation in England: evidence review”</em> which was published alongside the Government’s
<em>“Tobacco Control Plan for England”</em> in March 2011.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p>
</p><p>The reports referred to have been placed in the Library.</p><p> </p>
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