While most of the people are staying home due to the Covid-19 pandemic, a health group has expressed concern over nonsmokers being exposed to the equally deadly secondhand smoke.
Former Health Secretary Jaime Galvez Tan, a trustee of HealthJustice Philippines, a non-profit organization, warned that exposure to secondhand smoke may have devastating effects to the heart.
He gave the warning for fear of the possibility that staying at home this pandemic will give people more chances to smoke.
HealthJustice Philippines also reiterated that smoking in public transport should be banned at all times to protect the health of the people and to safeguard the environment.
Lawyer Benidict Nisperos, Legal Consultant of HealthJustice Philippines, urged concerned government agencies to strictly implement the prohibition of smoking in public transport which includes buses, taxis, trains, airports, and ports where people usually queue or gather.
He said that those mentioned are covered under President Duterte’s Executive Order (EO) 26 titled “Providing for the Establishment of Smoke-free Environments in Public and Enclosed Places.”
“According to the World Health Organization, Department of Health, health experts and scientists, there is no safe level of exposure to tobacco smoke. That is why we should first think of our health and measures to avoid the ill-effects of smoking, vaping, and heated tobacco products,” Nisperos said during Smoke-Free Transportation Media briefing held at the Parañaque Integrated Terminal Exchange (PITX) over the weekend.
He was also alarmed that over 20 million people are exposed to tobacco smoke in public transportation in the country and that this should not be ignored for over 20 million “is a huge number.”
“If we are going to look at it, we should be very concerned. They may be exposed to secondhand and thirdhand smoke,” he lamented.
Secondhand smoke and heart disease
According to WHO, tobacco use is the second leading cause of cardiovascular diseases (CVD) after high blood pressure with smoking and secondhand smoke contributing to approximately 12 percent of all heart disease deaths globally.
Prior to the pandemic, the 2015 Global Adult Tobacco Survey (GATS)—Philippines showed that secondhand smoke exposure is highly prevalent in public places, particularly in bars and nightclubs at 86 percent.
Tobacco exposure has been linked to 87,000 annual deaths among Filipinos, which are more than the number of deaths due to HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria combined.
Secondhand smoke exposure was also found to be prevalent in public transportation at 38 percent; followed by restaurants at 22 percent.
Other public places also affected by secondhand smoke are in government buildings at 13 percent; schools at 11 percent; and healthcare facilities at four percent.
Meanwhile, the Department of Health (DOH) said that ischemic heart diseases or the “hardening of arteries” continue to be the leading cause of death in the Philippines with more than 74,000 cases recorded in 2016.
It may be noted that chemicals in cigarette smoke cause the blood to thicken and increases the risk of blood clots.
Moreover, the Philippine Statistics Authority lists five other non-communicable diseases linked to smoking as top causes of deaths and diseases among Filipinos namely, cancers, stroke, hypertension, diabetes mellitus and other heart diseases. These are known to be strongly linked to four risk factors, one of which is tobacco use.
The 2015 GATS also reported that close to 16 million Filipino adults have smoked tobacco products; 40 percent are men and 5 percent are women.
Exposure to secondhand smoke
Dr. Galvez Tan also noted that June is the observance of National No-Smoking Month in the Philippines, pursuant to Proclamation No. 183. It aims to raise public awareness on the ill effects of smoking as well as to encourage smokers to give up the habit.
“During this Covid-19 pandemic, we should make our home smoke-free for tobacco use and secondhand smoke may cause serious health hazards like heart disease,” Dr. Galvez Tan said.
Smokers and vapers, Dr. Galvez Tan cited, are believed to be at high risk for contracting Covid-19, “and so you should not be breathing the air that came from someone else’s lungs” for that person may have contracted the disease.
“Another problem with smoking, vaping and exposure to secondhand hand smoke and aerosols is that they increase risks associated with Covid-19 virus transmission,” said Dr Galvez Tan.
In a recent interview with radio station DWIZ, Dr. Beverly Ho, Director of DOH’s Health Promotion Bureau, emphasized that “in general, we are discouraging smoking.”
“We know that smoking is a social activity at sa mga designated smoking areas, kapag naninigarilyo ang mga tao doon, ang face mask ay nakatanggal. That puts them at risk not just of smoking-induced diseases but also Covid-19. May risk ang paglalagay ng kamay sa bibig, pagtanggal ng face mask at pagbuga ng usok. These actions trigger (a Covid-19 virus carrier) to possibly transmit it to others.”
Dr. Galvez Tan, on the other hand, stressed that “any legislation that will expand the smoke-free environment and limit smoking areas, which has been identified as ‘hotspots’ of transmission, will also contribute to government efforts to address the Covid-19 pandemic.”
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