Secondhand Smoke
24/7 Helpline
Call the 24-hour crying baby helpline at 866-243-2229 (BABY)
Stopping Short-Term and Long-Term impacts
Secondhand Smoke
Smoking around infants can pose serious health risks to their developing bodies. Never let anyone smoke around your baby, including grandparents, friends, and daycare providers. If smoking does occur, don’t be afraid to speak up. Your voice can make a difference in your child’s life.
Research shows that smoking around infants and children can cause serious health problems. When someone smokes near your child, your child smokes too. Never let anyone smoke around your baby. This includes parents, grandparents, friends and daycare providers.
Health problems associated with secondhand smoke exposure:
- Asthma or other lifelong breathing problems
- Poor growth and development, both mentally and physically
- Ear infections
- Higher chance of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome
What is thirdhand smoke?
Thirdhand smoke refers to the toxins from cigarette smoke that stick to soft surfaces. Thirdhand smoke gets on clothes, hair, skin, baby blankets, carpets, toys, car seats and many other surfaces.
For a child in your care, quitting smoking means giving them a chance at a healthier body and mind. They don’t have a choice when it comes to secondhand and third-hand smoke.
But you do.
Thirdhand smoke can harm babies:
- Babies have tiny lungs and breathe rapidly, so more tobacco toxins get into their bodies
- If you have thirdhand smoke on your clothes, your baby can breathe in these toxins
- Low levels of toxins can build up to dangerous levels in the baby’s body
24/7 Helpline
Call the 24-hour crying baby helpline at 866-243-2229 (BABY)