Smoking is one of the most threatening widespread phenomena that threaten public health and environment. This paper explores the negative effect of smoking and “AB-62” Smoke free public housing policy. It talks about the impact of smoking in public health and nature. This paper briefly describes how smoking in residential building increase the risk of lung cancer, cardiovascular disease, respiratory disease, stroke, sudden infant death syndrome and more.
Then it goes on talking about how public housing smoking restrictions creates healthy environments encourage smokers to quit or reduce smoking. Smoking is considered a true addiction. There are about 600 ingredients in a cigarette and about 70 chemicals are poisonous.
Smoking is the number one cause for air pollution. Toxic chemicals of cigarettes pollute soil, air, and water. Smoke free housing policy will help to protect atmosphere.The smoke free housing policy covers low-income housing that is owned and managed by the government. Public housing tenants must be low income families and they must meet specific eligibility requirements. AB-62 policy applies to smoking be prohibited within 25 feet of residential public buildings including indoor- outdoor common areas, balconies, and patios. Smoking inside of the residential building is not only expose smokers but also expose nonsmokers, children and seniors. This policy would help to reduce maintenance cost of housing, help to reduce air pollution, reduce risk of fires, and improve public health benefits.
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Smoking is the number one leading cause of death worldwide. According to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention data, nicotine is responsible for over 6 million worldwide death annually. Based on a current trend and statistics, by 2030 projected death would be over 8 million annually. (CDC, 2017). Smoking harms every organ in human body. Smoking is the number one cause of lung, throat, and other respiratory cancer. When someone starts smoking cigarette, their lung tissue begin to start changing immediately. Chemicals of cigarettes cause irritation of the larynx, trachea, and whole respiratory system. Tobacco toxic increase blood pressure and heart rate. High blood pressure is the risk of stroke and heart attack.
Tobacco smoking reduce fertility for men and women both. Cancer of the ovary, cervix, and uterus also related to smoking. Tobacco make addicted to smokers on nicotine. This addiction start from curiosity. Teenagers start smoking as fun with the friend circles. If parents smoke cigarette at home, teenegers become more curious, and they steel cigarette from home and try to discover the smoking world. After start smoking cigarette, they become psychologically and physically dependent to nicotine. Nicotine is sedative makes the smokers to crave more nicotine to feel them better and relax. Curiosity start from smoking, but later it might end up with serious drug addiction such as cocaine or heroin. Public health issue such as type 2 diabetes, obesity, chronic disease, sleep apnea, indigestion, depression, anxiety all are terrible health conditions from smoking. Banning smoking inside of the building will help to reduce teenagers addiction on smoking cigarettes.
Smoking is one of the most common problems today. Smoker who Smokes within a multi unit residential building, also expose other nonsmoker residents and children’s, which is considered second hand smoke. California Department of public health reported that over 0.2 million children in California live in the same house with adult smokers and more than 742,000 children are at risk of secondhand exposure. (CDPH, 2018). Children who breathe in secondhand smoke are at higher risk of serious health problems including poor lung development, lung cancer, heart diseases, and respiratory problem.
Not only children expose with secondhand smoke but infant and Pregnant women also victim of secondhand smoke. If pregnant women smoke or exposed to secondhand smoke, it may lead to miscarriage, premature birth, lower birth weight, or sudden infant death syndrome. Secondhand exposed rate is higher at apartments and condominiums compare to residents of multi-unit housing. AB-62 policy focused on smoke free public housing. This policy requires prohibiting smoking tobacco products within 25 feet of public housing units. The benefits of smoke-free policies could be considerable and future generation would be most beneficial.
Public housing is operated and maintain by government agency. This housing system provide affordable rent to qualified lower income families, including older and disabled residents. Public housing funded by the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development. The main goal of public housing is provided convenient living place with healthy environment. When, the question comes about healthy environment, some restrictiction must be provided by housing authority. Which included reduce crime, drug and indoor smoking. AB 62 policy will help to reduce smoking. Which will reduce residents exposure to secondhand smoke. This policy will improve air quality. Environmental pollution occurs from smoking by releasing toxic air pollutants into the atmosphere. This policy able to reduce home fires caused by smoking materials. All public housing residence will get benefit from a reduction of damage, injuries, and deaths from fires caused by prohibited tobacco products. Prohibit smoking in indoor of residential building would be able reduce all health related diseases caused by smoking.
AB-62 policy would be hard to enforce if smoker residents do not get alternative resources to quit smoking. Proper counseling, nicotine patches, gums must be provided. Every public housing could arrange physical activity such as game room and Jim room inside of the building. Cigarette smoking is terrified addiction and that’s why it is difficult to quit without proper resources and entertain. Anti-smokers claim that government doesn’t have the right to dictate personal behaviors and habits of residents. They think, they must have personal freedom inside of their home. They also concern about their security. Because if they want to smoke, they have to go 25 feet far from their house.
Which is unsafe at night in high crime neighborhood. They claim, new smoke free housing policy violate individual rights and trying to force them outside in terrible weather. Anti smokers also claims, government must stop industry’s ads first. Industry’s ads attract non smokers to start smoking. Their attractive price breaks and other promotions for all smoking products are a big influence in our society. The tobacco industry spends billions of dollars each year to create and market ads that show smoking is exciting and glamorous. Non smokers claims, why government is not taking action against them instead of giving hard time to low income smokers. Another negative barrier of this smoke free housing policy is cost. The costs included training, legal, and administrative costs. But policy claims, one portion of these cost could be collected from the smokers who will violate the rule. This policy also claims that it could reduce housing agencies repair costs. This rules would help low-income smokers to successful quitting and discourage teenegers from start smoking.
Smoking is the number one cause of death in the world. Smokers and nonsmokers both are victim for this unholy toxic chemicals. Smoking products contains many harmful substance that cause heart diseases, lung cancer, infertility, obesity, chronic diseases, and all the serious illness. But smoking is preventable, and we all know, preventable is better than cure. It does not cost money or time. All we need acknowledgement and activities to get rid of this addiction. Everyone has right to live in a smoke-free environment. Smoke free housing rules imposed to provide health benefit to all public housing residents and will help to improve the overall quality of public health.
References
- AB- 62,Public Housing : smoke free policy Act, California Legislation(2017). California Tobacco facts & figures 2018 ( CDPH). Retrieved from https://www.cdph.ca.gov/Programs/CCDPHP/DCDIC/CTCB/CDPH%20Document%20L
- Jonathan P. W., Mark Gottlieb, J.D. & Michelle M. Mello, Ph.D.( 2010) “Regulation of smoking of public housing” The new england journal of medicine. 362: 2319-2325.
- Mokina, N., Pjatin, V., & Mokin, E. (2015). Modern aspects of evaluation of health status using acoustic analysis of respiratory sound of teenage smoking. 6.3 Tobacco, Smoking Control and Health Education. doi:10.1183/13993003.congress-2015.pa1200
- Phua, J. (2013). Participating in Health Issue-Specific Social Networking Sites to Quit Smoking: How Does Online Social Interconnectedness Influence Smoking Cessation Self-Efficacy? Journal of Communication,63(5), 933-952. doi:10.1111/jcom.12054
- Smoking & Tobacco Use. (2017, September 05). Retrieved from https://www.cdc.gov/tobacco/data_statistics/index.htm
- Tobacco Control Branch. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.cdph.ca.gov/Programs/CCDPHP/DCDIC/CTCB/Pages/CaliforniaTobacco
