You can avoid "second-hand smoke", but you can't avoid "third-hand smoke". The impact of smoking is far more than you think

"Smoking is harmful to health" is a well-known slogan today. Even smokers will think of this before smoking. But what are the harms of smoking? Why is it so difficult to quit smoking? Is e-cigarette a substitute for quitting smoking, or a more harmful addictive substance?

01There is secondhand smoke and thirdhand smoke

When you take out a lighter and light a cigarette, nicotine, tar, various flavors and additives will diffuse into the air as the cigarette burns. While smokers enjoy the pleasure, they also inhale various harmful substances into their lungs, which is the so-called "first-hand smoke".

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Of course, the smoke will not only stay on the smoker's body, but also spread around, forming "second-hand smoke". According to current research, second-hand smoke contains hundreds of known toxic or carcinogenic chemicals, including heavy metals, nitrosamines and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons. This is very innocent for other people near the smoker, who passively accept the invasion of second-hand smoke.

Secondhand smoke can damage genetic material, interfere with normal cell division, destroy the body's immune function, and cause cancer and deformities. What's more serious is that there is no so-called safe threshold for secondhand smoke exposure. Even if a person is exposed to secondhand smoke for a short period of time, it will harm the health of the body; even if fans or air conditioners are used for ventilation, non-smokers cannot be prevented from inhaling secondhand smoke.

Many smokers now realize the harm of "first-hand smoke" and "second-hand smoke" through popular science propaganda, so they avoid others when smoking, especially children or pregnant women. At home, smokers sometimes go to the balcony or toilet to smoke. But in fact, as long as the act of smoking exists, the harm is still impossible to avoid - because there is not only "second-hand smoke", but also "third-hand smoke".

The concept of third-hand smoke was first proposed by the Harvard Cancer Center through case studies. It refers to smoke pollutants that remain on the surface of objects and in dust after smoking, which will be released back into the air and react with other components in the air to produce secondary pollution. At home, the harmful gases released by smoking will be adsorbed on surfaces such as clothes, furniture, walls, and even hair and skin. These harmful substances may exist for days, weeks, or even months. In other words, even if you are in a room where no one is smoking, but you can smell the smoke, you are actually "inhaling third-hand smoke."

In many cases, third-hand smoke is even more harmful than first-hand or second-hand smoke. This is because it is more hidden and difficult to detect: when we see someone smoking, we may consciously avoid it, but many times we are suffering from the poisoning of third-hand smoke without knowing it, and the harmful substances may have accumulated in our bodies through breathing and skin. Infants and young children are especially vulnerable and sensitive, and because of their light weight, they are more likely to inhale too many pollutants; on the other hand, children are also unaware of the dangers, and when crawling on the ground, they are likely to grab something and put it in their mouths, making them more likely to come into contact with harmful substances on clothes or toys.

02Why is it so difficult to quit smoking?

Since smoking is not only harmful to health in the short term, but can also have adverse effects over a long period of time through second-hand and third-hand smoke, many smokers naturally want to quit smoking, but a new question arises: why is it so difficult to quit smoking? It seems that after trying everything, they still can't resist the temptation of taking a puff...

In fact, we can’t blame smokers for their lack of willpower, because quitting smoking is not just about competing with your own body, it’s also about cutting off from your past life.

The main reason for smoking addiction is that cigarettes contain nicotine. In nature, this substance is an alkaloid secreted by Solanaceae plants, mainly used to poison insects that feed on the leaves of these plants. Humans initially used this substance as a medicine, but soon the emergence of cigarettes made this addictive substance rampant.

When nicotine enters the human body, it will pass through the blood-brain barrier and enter the brain in just about 7 seconds. It then binds to the receptors in the brain, activating the reward pathway in the brain to release dopamine, which makes people feel pleasure. Over time, nicotine will cause people to develop addictive behaviors.

Many studies have confirmed that nicotine is more addictive than most drugs, only lower than cocaine and heroin. When tobacco becomes addictive, the brain has actually changed. When people start to quit smoking and suddenly reduce nicotine intake, the dopamine level in the body will drop, and people will experience symptoms such as restlessness, irritability, anxiety, depression, inattention, insomnia, reduced heart rate, increased appetite, irritability, depression, etc. This is the withdrawal reaction of nicotine. Not only will the body react, but the psychology will also be severely affected. Many people fail to quit smoking, that is, they fall due to the obstacles of physical dependence and mental dependence.

Moreover, many people regard smoking as a way to relieve stress, and the pressure from work and life is temporarily relieved through smoking. If a person cannot improve his or her environment and is in a state of mental tension or excessive stress for a long time, it will be even more difficult to quit smoking.

03The Crime and Punishment of E-cigarettes

There are also many "smokers" who think that since quitting smoking is so difficult and cigarettes are harmful to the body, can I "take a detour" and use e-cigarettes instead of traditional cigarettes, and will this be less harmful to the body?

Electronic cigarettes are electronic atomizers that use ultrasound to atomize liquid to produce a mist effect, and then deliver nicotine and other ingredients into the lungs. In fact, electronic cigarettes were invented as early as 1963, but they have only gradually become popular in the past decade.

When e-cigarettes first appeared, they were claimed to be able to "help quit smoking," "reduce smoking addiction," or "alleviate withdrawal symptoms." Traditional cigarettes need to be burned, and the high temperature environment easily produces tar, while e-cigarettes are produced in an atomized manner, which can eliminate the production of tar and seem to be a healthier way.

However, according to clinical research in recent years, the harm of e-cigarettes is no less than that of traditional cigarettes.

First of all, the main ingredient of e-cigarettes is still nicotine, which means that smoking e-cigarettes is doomed to be addictive. Many smokers who quit smoking hope to reduce their nicotine intake by switching to e-cigarettes, but this effect is usually not achieved in reality. Because when the concentration decreases, smokers are likely to increase the frequency of smoking or smoke more cigarettes at a time to ensure sufficient nicotine intake, and the total nicotine intake will not decrease. In particular, e-cigarettes also save the process of lighting cigarettes, which makes smoking easier in comparison. In fact, the vast majority of people who try to quit smoking with e-cigarettes will not stop smoking in the end. On the contrary, they are more likely to smoke e-cigarettes and traditional cigarettes at the same time.

Secondly, e-cigarettes may also contain more toxic substances. The composition of e-cigarette liquid is very complex, containing metals, volatile organic compounds, phenolic compounds, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, flavors, solvent carriers, nicotine and other ingredients. In particular, many manufacturers will develop many new flavors to attract customers, and these flavors actually add a variety of chemical substances. For example, cinnamon-flavored e-cigarettes actually add cinnamaldehyde, which is irritating to the skin and mucous membranes and can easily cause allergies. Because different manufacturers use different materials and ingredients, the smoke produced after heating contains different ingredients, making the harm of e-cigarettes more difficult to predict and judge.

More importantly, e-cigarettes are often disguised as "trendy toys", making teenagers think that smoking e-cigarettes is "cool", and the more diverse sales channels of e-cigarettes make it easier for teenagers to buy e-cigarettes. According to a survey by the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention: In 2019, the e-cigarette use rate of junior high school students was 2.7%, the e-cigarette use rate of high school students was 2.2%, and the e-cigarette use rate of vocational school students was 4.5%. The proliferation of e-cigarettes will only make the problem of tobacco addiction worse, rather than solve it.

The World Health Organization has made it clear that e-cigarettes have not shown effective smoking cessation effects at the population level. On the contrary, some evidence shows that it can have adverse effects on population health, which is worrying. Therefore, urgent action is needed to control e-cigarettes to protect children and non-smokers and minimize health hazards to the public. my country also promulgated the "E-cigarette Management Measures" in 2022, which clearly restricts the sale and promotion of e-cigarettes.

04What should we do when faced with smoke?

Lung cancer is known as the king of cancers. It is the "double champion" of morbidity and mortality among all cancers, and smoking and passive smoking are the most obvious and major risk factors. Therefore, paying attention to the smoking problem is not just for smokers, but is closely related to the health of each of us.

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So when faced with the problem of smoking, how can we minimize its harm?

No matter when, quitting smoking completely is definitely the fundamental solution. Although it is said before that quitting smoking is so difficult, it is really difficult to do it with your willpower alone. But if you have realized the harm of smoking, you can effectively improve the success rate of quitting smoking by relying on the assistance and guidance of professional doctors, the combination of medicines and lifestyle changes.

Even if you cannot quit smoking for the time being, it is also important to reduce the number of times you smoke, especially not to rely on e-cigarettes. When nicotine intake gradually decreases, our body will self-regulate the secretion of dopamine. We can also help reduce smoking by choosing some alternative items or behaviors, such as doing more physical exercise, and replacing the idea of ​​smoking with tea or water.

In addition, do not smoke in public places, especially in densely populated areas such as hospitals, schools, and shopping malls, and do not litter cigarette butts or ashes. If passive smokers find someone smoking or smelling cigarettes in the environment, they should try to stay away or increase ventilation to minimize the concentration of harmful substances in the air.

The smoke may be comfortable at the moment, but it comes at the cost of your own and others' health. Each of us can take action in our own lives, whether it is quitting smoking, supporting family members to quit smoking, or advocating a smoke-free environment. Every effort is important and every change is worth celebrating. Let us start with ourselves and start now. I wish you all a healthy day!

Source: Chongqing Science and Technology Museum

Author: Quasimodo in the Garden, Science Popularizer

Audit expert: Li Chunli

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