In the hair of children whose parents smoke. Among parents who ban smoking on porches or outside the home, the findings are extremely worrying:
The researchers emphasize: “In Israel, the porch of the house should be considered as part of the home environment. Smoking next to a window or in any other specific place in the house does not protect most children from exposure. Our recommendations are unequal: To reduce children’s exposure to tobacco smoke, smoking within 10 meters of the house should be completely avoided. Similarly, in open areas,
In the study, the team tested the children’s level of tobacco smoke exposure by testing samples of the children’s hair for the presence of nicotine. It provides an estimate of the amount of exposure to tobacco smoke in previous months. An analysis of the data showed that in smoking households that confined smoking to the porch or outside and did not smoke indoors, 62% of children were exposed to tobacco smoke.
Effects of parental smoking: Nicotine detected in children’s hair
It was noted that in the first phase of the study (which was published almost two years ago), the research team tested for the presence of child nicotine in children of parents who smoked – and then found that smoking 70% of children with parents had childhood nicotine. Now, as mentioned above, the researchers examined the data by location of parental smoking.
Exposure to household smoke is bad for children
Prof. Rosen: It is known that smoking outside the home, even when doors and windows are completely closed, does not fully protect children from exposure to tobacco smoke. The Israeli situation is of great concern because in many cases, verandahs in Israel are directly adjacent to living areas and may sometimes be partially open; The close proximity allows smoke to travel from those areas to the interior of the home. Parents mistakenly believe that the porch provides a “safe” place to smoke.
In fact, when children come out onto the porch and someone is smoking, or when smoke enters the home, they are most likely to come into direct contact. Once in the home, the smoke is absorbed into the environment, for example, into furniture or walls or carpeting, and is then slowly released into the air over weeks or months. In addition, this residual smoke, known as thirdhand smoke, can be swallowed from the environment or absorbed into the body through the skin, especially in infants and young children.
In addition, smoking parents transmit toxins from tobacco smoke to their skin, on their hands, in their hair, on their clothes. therefore it is recommended to After smoking, brush teeth, wash hands and change clothes before coming in contact with children.“Pro Rosen noted that this new information is directly relevant to Case 1416/21 on neighbor smoking, which is currently being heard at the Supreme Court. The appeal against the Ministries of Environment, Health and the Interior relates to tobacco smoke which Enters the apartment as an environmental hazard, a claim supported by the Clean Air Act, the Hazard Prevention Act, and the definition of an environmental hazard in the Penal Code.
Prof Rosen: “The results of this study suggest that in families with smokers, Limiting smoking to porches does not prevent most children from being exposed to tobacco smoke. Therefore, the approach of the Ministry of Health, which opposes the protection of individuals from smoke entering their homes to the protection of children of smokers, does not protect the children of smokers, and moreover it harms neighbors and children. Can cause considerable harm to neighbors. We ask the Ministry of Health to reconsider its stand in light of these findings.”
avoid exposure to tobacco smoke
Prof Rosen concluded: The State of Israel should make the reduction of parental smoking a national goal and invest appropriate resources on the issue. Unfortunately, there are many misconceptions about when and how exposure occurs. Seventy-five percent of tobacco smoke is invisible and our sense of smell is not reliable, so many parents mistakenly believe they are protecting their children when in fact they are exposing them to substantial health risks. As a society, we must protect citizens and protect everyone from the risk of exposure to tobacco smoke, especially infants and children, pregnant women, and all vulnerable populations.”
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