Environmental Tobacco Action & Awareness Week October 7- 13, 2007

Update...
Check out the Word Search at the bottom of this page....

* Note to Extension Educators:  For additional educational materials and resources, please refer to the Secondhand Smoke Instructional Module from our Training Manual.

Backgrounder

About 9-12 million young children are regularly exposed to their parents’ cigarette smoke at home.  This translates into approximately one-fourth of American households with young children that allow smoking indoors.  

Infants and young children whose parents smoke are among the most seriously affected by exposure to secondhand smoke.  These children are at increased risk for a number of health problems, including lower respiratory tract infections such as pneumonia and bronchitis.  EPA estimates that secondhand smoke is responsible for between 150,000 and 300,000 lower respiratory tract infections in infants and children under 18 months of age annually, resulting in between 7,500 and 15,000 hospitalizations each year.  Children exposed to secondhand smoke are also more likely to suffer symptoms of respiratory irritation like coughing, wheezing, and excess phlegm.  Secondhand smoke can also lead to a buildup of fluid in the middle ear, the most common cause of hospitalization of children for an operation.

Children with asthma are especially at risk.  EPA estimates that between 200,000 and 1,000,000 children with asthma have had their condition worsened by exposure to secondhand smoke.  This pollutant may cause thousands of children without asthma to develop the condition each year. 

Americans need to protect themselves and their children from exposure to secondhand smoke!

(June, 2003)  

Kathleen Parrott
Virginia Tech

Consumer Calendar

Monday 

Adults:  Take the Smoke-free Home Pledge! Pledge to keep your home smoke-free today.  Encourage other friends, relatives, or neighbors to do the same.
Children:  Draw a “No Smoking” sign (a cigarette in a circle with a line though it) or a sign that states “This is a Smoke-Free Home.”  Display the sign(s) in your room or play area.

Tuesday

Adults:  Learn more about secondhand smoke at your library or by “surfing the web.”  Share the information with at least one other person.
Children:  Ask an adult about the health risks to children from secondhand smoke.  Discuss what can be done in your community to protect children from secondhand smoke in the home

Wednesday

Adults:  Do not smoke inside today.  Talk to children you know about smoking and secondhand smoke.
Children:  Look up “asthma” and “pneumonia” in the dictionary, an Encyclopedia, or on the World Wide Web.  Think about how secondhand smoke can make these lung diseases worse.

Thursday

  Adults:   Write a letter to the editor of your local newspaper explaining why secondhand smoke is hazardous to children’s health.  Share what you are doing during Secondhand Smoke Action Week.  Encourage people to take the Smoke-free Home Pledge.
Children:  Have you solved the Word Scramble?

Friday 

Adults:  Ask your pediatrician or family doctor if s/he counsels parents about the health risks from secondhand smoke.  Would the doctor be willing to speak to local community groups about secondhand smoke and children’s health.
Children:  Have you found all the words in the Word Search?

Saturday 

Adults:  Volunteer to do a short program on secondhand smoke and children’s health at your church, local school, daycare center, or through a hospital or community service organization.
Children:  Make a list of reasons for not smoking.  Work with a friend to see who can think of the longest list.

Sunday 

Adults:  Plan a family activity in a smoke free environment.
Children:  Do you know someone who smokes?  Ask them not to smoke inside today.  Make a poster to illustrate the message:  “If you can’ t quit, smoke outside for your kids.” 

(June 2003)

Kathleen Parrott
Virginia Tech

Educator Tips

Review secondhand smoke materials in the Health Indoor Air for America’s Homes Training Manual.  Below are some suggestions to implement for the week.  You probably won’t have time to carry out all these ideas, but pick those that best fit your situation.  Add your own ideas! 

One to two months in advance: 

1.  Contact local daycare centers, pre-schools, or Head Start programs.  Discuss ways to provide parents with information on secondhand smoke and children.  Ask them to co-sponsor an educational program.  For example, they could publicize the program to their parents and/or provide a location.

2.  Contact local social service agencies and health departments.  Ask for suggestions on audiences you could reach and how best to promote the program to them.  Recognize that social service agencies must respect the confidentiality of their clients.  Ask if you could provide informational materials in the waiting room.  Consider opportunities to collaborate.

3.Contact local hospital and health care centers.  Ask if you can put up a display on National Home Indoor Air Quality Action and Awareness Month and secondhand smoke and children.  Coordinate with program they may already be conducting.

4.  Contact local organizations or agencies offering prenatal, childbirth, new mother, or parenting classes.  Ask to make a presentation on secondhand smoke and children.  See if you can use the video Poisoning Our Children…The Perils of Secondhand Smoke.  Alternatively, ask to provide fact sheets or brochures to participants.

5.  Contact local ministerial associations or individual churches.  Ask if it would be possible to present a program to their parent groups or other classes they hold.

Two to three weeks in advance:

1.  Contact local pediatricians and family practice doctors.  Ask to put information in their waiting rooms.

2.  Ask your pediatric and family practice doctors if they would be willing to do a presentation on the dangers of secondhand smoke.  Provide a copy of the Healthy Indoor Air for America’s Homes materials on secondhand smoke.

3.  Contact local radio stations.  Ask if you can record a public service announcement on secondhand smoke.

(June 2003)

Kathleen Parrott
Virginia Tech

Radio Public Service Announcements

Script (30 seconds)
     Did you know that secondhand smoke is inhaled by nonsmokers who are in a room or building with a smoker? This is involuntary smoking and can cause serious health effects in children. If you are a tobacco smoker, respect the health of other people. Do not smoke indoors. And never smoke around children. October is National Home Indoor Air Quality Action and Awareness Month. For more information about secondhand smoke, indoor air quality, and your health, contact [local expert name, phone number, and office].

Script (60 seconds)
     We have a way to save four to five billion dollars in medical expenses every year. The simple answer? Give our children an environment that is free from tobacco smoke. Exposure to secondhand smoke is a major cause of illness among children in the U.S. Children who are regularly exposed to secondhand smoke can experience a wide variety of health problems which increase disease and hospitalization, increase medical expenses, interfere with growth and development, and hinder quality of life. Children have a right to a smoke-free environment! If you are a parent, do not allow smoking in your home or around your children. October is National Home Indoor Air Quality Action and Awareness Month. For more information about secondhand smoke, indoor air quality, and your health, contact [local expert name, phone number, and office].

NEWS

Contacts: [Insert name, agency, telephone number] 

For Immediate Release [Insert date]

INVOLUNTARY SMOKING POSES DANGER TO CHILDREN

    [YOUR TOWN] -- It does not come as a surprise to most people to hear that tobacco smoking is harmful to the health of a smoker. But did you know that smoking can be harmful to other people who are near the smoker?

    Secondhand smoke is the name given to the smoke inhaled by nonsmokers who are in a room or building with a smoker. Secondhand smoke results in involuntary smoking. It can be a serious health risk to children.

    Secondhand smoke can cause illnesses in children, including irritation of the eyes, nose, throat, and lungs. Inhaling secondhand smoke can cause coughing, excess phlegm and chest discomfort, and reduced lung capacity, especially in children.

    If you are a tobacco smoker, respect the health and choices of other people. Do not smoke indoors, unless you are in a designated smoking area. Take the Smoke-free Home Pledge by calling (800) 513-1157.

    For more information about secondhand smoke, indoor air quality, and your health, contact your local [insert agency and phone number] and visit the Healthy Indoor Air for America’s Homes website: www.healthyindoorair.org.  October 2007 is National Home Indoor Air Quality Action and Awareness Month and now is the time to improve your health and reduce your exposure to secondhand smoke.

     Healthy Indoor Air for America’s Homes is a national consumer education program designed to develop awareness of home indoor air quality concerns and encourage people to take steps to improve the quality of air in their homes. Support and coordination of the program comes from a partnership of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, USDA Cooperative State Research, Education and Extension Service, and the Montana State University Extension Housing Program. Program Managers in each state are responsible for implementing the program.

NEWS

Contacts: [Insert name, agency, telephone number] 

For Immediate Release [Insert date]

CHILD HEALTH THREAT

    [YOUR TOWN] -- Most people would agree that it would be unhealthy for a young child to smoke a cigarette. But did you know that exposure to secondhand smoke from a cigarette, cigar, pipe, or a person smoking is a major cause of illness among children in the U.S.?

    Millions of children are exposed to secondhand smoke in their homes. Research by many respected organizations has shown that smoking by parents can result in many health problems in young children, including: 

• Low birth weight infants
• Sudden Infant Death Syndrome
• Pneumonia
• Bronchitis and bronchiolitis
• Impaired lung function
• Otitis media (ear infections and hearing problem complications)
• Increased episodes of asthma
• Delayed recovery from respiratory illnesses
• Increased school absences due to illness
• Fire-related injuries
• Increased likelihood of developing a smoking habit and nicotine addiction
• Adult illnesses, including cataracts, heart disease, and lung cancer

    Do not let other people smoke in your home, your car, or around your children. Ask about smoking policies in places that you take your children, such as school, daycare, churches or synagogues, and recreation and community centers. Make sure that children in these places are not exposed to secondhand smoke.

    For more information about secondhand smoke, indoor air quality, and your health, contact your local [insert agency and phone number] and visit the Healthy Indoor Air for America’s Homes website: www.healthyindoorair.org. October 2007 is National Home Indoor Air Quality Action and Awareness Month and now is the time to remember: every child has a right to grow up in a smoke-free environment.

    Healthy Indoor Air for America’s Homes is a national consumer education program designed to develop awareness of home indoor air quality concerns and encourage people to take steps to improve the quality of air in their homes. Support and coordination of the program comes from a partnership of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, USDA Cooperative State Research, Education and Extension Service, and the Montana State University Extension Housing Program. Program Managers in each state are responsible for implementing the program.

Word Search

E X I C M A Y O T P M Y C G Z N K N J U 

S K Q R B X E E N C R D I N Q O N C G C 

T R O Y R W D E T O B U G I C I C X B B 

Y D B M B I U G T R L A A H C T S U Q B 

N S J U S M T A W E O S R G L A F O R A 

J V S D O D R A C I I T E U I Z W F H C 

R X L N X I N Q T J C H T O H I S W T Z 

P E I I P F A A L I A M T C L L V A R S 

T A K S I B F R H R O A E U O A X G K Y 

J L E O M D W U E D D N V A C T T G L F 

N R Q K M G B B R O N C H I T I S P F Z 

G N I N O S I O P J I O H G P P R F U C 

P C R Q J D N G T O B A C C O S Y M U E 

H H P E A B N O U S J G P E G O A O X S 

P G L S T I J Q N A P E B U S H L J L I 

E Y W E Z V P F O L X C X T Y U H T H T 

W Y X E G F U V U L U D G Z N N Y D Z B 

E F E M I M Y C J H T E B G S A V Y X B 

Z H D C Z A R K K O U H N E F N S J U Q
W E Y J D B A X G S G W P D D Z F U Y W

Word Scramble

MSAHTA

SIITONRCHB

RTEAEGITC

GIGNUOHC

PAE

ZIIIHPSOATLNO

ATOITNRIRI

NGUL

ONN-KMOSRE

GEMLPH

MEUPNNOAI

OIOINSNGP

ARYIOTRERPS

EAHDNNDOSC EKSOM

BOCACOT

ZGNEEIHW

Answers are at the bottom of this page....

scroll down.... 

(June 2003)

Ethan Wechtaluk
Kathleen Parrott
Virginia Tech

Word Search Answers 

+ + + + + + E + C + + + + + + + + Y + P
+ + + + + + + K + I + + + + + + + R + N
+ R E K O M S N O N G + + + + + + O + E
+ + + + + + + + + M + A + + + + + T + U
I R R I T A T I O N S + R + + + + A + M
+ + + + + + + + + + + D + E + + + R S O
+ + + + G + G + P + + + N + T + + I + N
+ + + + + N N O + + + + + A + T T P + I
N O I T A Z I L A T I P S O H I E S + A
A + + + + S Z H + + + + C + H N + E + +
+ S + + O + E + G + + C + C + + O R + +
+ + T N + + E + + U A + N + + + + C + +
+ + I H + + H + + B O O P H L E G M E +
+ N + + M + W + O + R C + + U + + + E S
G + + + + A + T + B + + + + N + + P + +
+ + + + + + + + + + + + + + G + A + + +
+ + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + +
+ + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + +
+ + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + +
+ + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + 

Word Scramble Answers

ASTHMA
BRONCHITIS
CIGARETTE
COUGHING
EPA
HOSPITALIZATION
IRRITATION
LUNG
NON-SMOKER
PHLEGM
PNEUMONIA
POISONING
RESPIRATORY
SECONHAND SMOKE
TOBACCO
WHEEZING

(June 2003)

Ethan Wechtaluk
Kathleen Parrott
Virginia Tech

Contributors to this week of National Home IAQ Action & Awareness Month include: