Harmful Effects of Smoking With Kids in the Car
The dangers of secondhand smoke are significant enough to lead to widespread legislation banning and limiting the places smokers can light up in public areas. Because an automobile is a small, confined space, smoking in this environment carries even more health risks for everyone in the vehicle, especially young children.
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Small Enclosed Space
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A car is a small, confined area. If someone smokes in a car, the toxins build up quickly due to the confined area, according to the Americans for Nonsmokers̵7; Rights website. The toxicity of the air inside a smoke-filled car is much higher than what the Environmental Protection Agency considers a hazardous air quality, according to ANR. Unfortunately, opening windows does not relieve the toxicity level inside the vehicle. In addition, the particulates from the smoke settle onto the interior surfaces of the car. Over time, these surfaces release these toxins back into the confined area to expose passengers to additional toxins.
Children̵7;s Dependence
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Children buckled into car seats or seat belts have no control over where they are going or the way they get there. Children cannot advocate for themselves the way adults can, so when a child rides in a car filled with secondhand smoke, the child may not complain about the smoking, according to the Global Advisors Smokefree Policy, a nonprofit tobacco control policy and legal resource center. And further, pre-verbal children do not even possess the ability to complain.
Breathing Rate
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Because of the size and structure of children̵7;s lungs, they breathe at an accelerated rate in comparison to adults, states the TobaccoFreeCA website. This faster breathing rate means that children breathe more air than adults do. Children trapped in a car with secondhand smoke will inhale more of the smoke than an adult would.
Health Risks
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Of the over 7,000 chemicals contained in secondhand smoke, at least 70 are confirmed carcinogens. Children are one of the groups with elevated health risks from secondhand smoke. A child without any prior symptoms of asthma may develop the disease from exposure to secondhand smoke, warns TobaccoFreeCA. Children also develop more ear infections, bronchitis, pneumonia, chronic respiratory problems and even tooth decay, advises the American Academy of Pediatrics. Babies exposed to secondhand smoke have a higher SIDS risk.
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