Cigarette smoking in the smoking-free zone in the Washington State University is currently a major concern. Those using tobacco in the institution incorporate the faculty, students, and other individuals visiting the University (WSU, 2013). It implies that so many people are utilizing the facility, smoking area that ends up emitting too much smoke in the environment. The smoke is in turn inhaled by other students who are not active smokers. These students end up joining the smoking chain as passive smokers due to their exposure to the environmental tobacco smoke. Passive smoking happens involuntarily. In some cases, an individual is likely to smell the cigarette scent in the air, or one can inhale it without even noticing whether there is any cigarette smoke in circulation. Despite the practice of tobacco use in the university smoking area being authorized, the effects of too much tobacco utilized in these locations have far reaching consequences on the non-smokers.
The most immediate effect is irritation on the non-smoker student. The other effects include adverse health implications on the non-smokers such as bad smell, coloring of teeth, and financial losses due to the commitment of significant amounts of money into the treatment and care of those suffering from smoking-related illnesses. It is also more likely to affect the reputation of the institution that makes it a severe problem at WSU. It is essential to comprehend the health impacts of smoking too much in the smoking-free zones for purposes of devising appropriate methods of countering these effects.
Scope of the Problem
Most of the Washington State University students, both smokers and non-smokers are more likely to be diagnosed with smoking-associated diseases. These diseases may include lung cancer, asthma, cardiovascular diseases, chronic bronchitis, emphysema, chronic obstructive pulmonary disorder (COPD) and heart diseases among others (Feathers, Woodyard, & Simon, n.d.). Since both the active and passive smokers are exposed to carcinogens and other irritants, it implies that the non-smokers are equally prone to facing the smoke hazards without necessarily being active smokers. Besides, a passive smoker suffers the same health problems just like an active smoker. The secondhand smoke is typically the inevitable effect of being in an environment that has smoke. The smoke in Washington State University is generated by the cigarette’s burning tip as well as the smoke that is puffed out by the smokers that translates into more smoke in the air for non-smokers to inhale. Besides, the increased concentration of smoke in the air is due to the rise in the number of smokers utilizing the smoking zone that translates into an augmented number of passive smokers in the entire student population. Even though most of the people may regard passive smoking as being a minor issue, it affects the health of the smoker as well as causing financial losses in the care for and treatment of smoking-related diseases. Moreover, the deterioration of the smokers’ health condition can lead to deaths.
Passive Smoking Associated Health Effects
Just like active smoking, passive smoking also affects the health of an individual. It leads to a lot of diseases that encompass lower respiratory tract diseases, wheezing, as well as asthma. Birchard (1998) showed that there is a close association between passive smoking and some chronic diseases such as cancer. Similarly, Cao et al. (2015) found that there is a statistical significance between the lung and cervical cancer risk with passive smoking. Passive smoking also affects other organs that do not have a direct contact with smoke such as the liver. For instance, three adverse impacts are likely to occur; oncogenic, direct toxic, as well as immunological effects. Amongst all these diseases, asthma and wheezing are the most common illnesses in the Washington State University. Most of the people diagnosed with the smoke-related disease usually suffer from the two conditions while others suffer either lung or cervical cancer in the institution (WSU, 2013). These diseases affect the health of an individual(s), and if not treated before the situation worsens they can be fatal. There is the need for intervention into the matter for purposes of countering the associated health impacts.
Factors contributing to Increment of Smoke in the University
Several factors lead to increased smoke levels in the campus air. They include:
Too much smoking in the smoking area- there has been an influx in the number of smokers in the smoking free zone in the institution that leads to increased smoke accumulation in the campus air. For instance, the area is utilized by the students, faculty, visitors, and the staff.
Lack of awareness- most of the smokers are not well-informed on the manner in which they can affect the non-smokers. The flocking numbers of smokers in the smoking zone is primarily explained by the lack of knowledge on the manner in which they are likely to concentrate the air with the smoke that in most cases is invisible in the other areas within the institution. Besides, the non-smokers usually presume that there is no likelihood of diffusion of smoke from the smoking zone to the other areas that makes them less concerned.
Lack of laws regulating the number of smokers that the smoking area can hold at any given particular time- the WSU smoking and tobacco policy does not specify the number of smokers who should utilize the facility at any given time. Lack of such regulation has made smokers use the area without minding their numbers in any particular time that translates into high smoke volumes in the air.
Lack of running initiatives to educate the smokers on the ways of minimizing smoke in the environment- there are no policies in place to educate the smokers about the impacts of smoking too much in the free zone. Besides, there are no strategies set forth for recycling smoke into other less harmful or harmless products.
Justification for Intervention(s)
The smoke generated from the tip of the burning tobacco product and that the smoker exhales is composed of various substances that are harmful to the health of both the active as well as the passive smokers. The smoke contains more than 4000 chemicals that incorporate both gases and particles. Moreover, it has chemical irritants as well as over seventy carcinogens. Carcinogens refer to the substances that cause cancer. According to Protano and Vitali (2011), the mainstream smoke has lesser toxic constituents as opposed to the side stream smoke. In the case of Washington State University where there is excessive smoking in the free zone, it implies that there are higher concentrations of these dangerous constituents that call for immediate attention. There is the need for coming up with the necessary interventions that will be applied to solve the problem.
Attachment: Washington State University Smoking and Tobacco Use Policy.
Reference
Cao, S., Yang, C., Gan, Y., & Lu, Z. (2015). The Health Effects of Passive Smoking: An
Overview of Systematic Reviews Based on Observational Epidemiological Evidence. Plos ONE, 10(10), 1-12. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0139907
Birchard, K. (1998). European study reports passive smoking dangers. Lancet, 352(9136), 1288.
Feathers, K. M., Woodyard, J., & Simon, N. (n.d.). SMOKING SURVEY REPORT. Retrieved
May 26, 2016, from http://academicsenate.wayne.edu/studentaffairs/smokingsurveyreport.pdf
Protano, C., & Vitali, M. (2011). The New Danger of Thirdhand Smoke: Why Passive Smoking
Does Not Stop at Secondhand Smoke. Environmental Health Perspectives, 119(10), A422. doi:10.1289/ehp.1103956
WSU. (2013). WSU Vancouver will be a smoke- and tobacco-free campus | WSU News |
Washington State University. Retrieved May 20, 2016, from https://news.wsu.edu/2013/03/28/wsu-vancouver-will-be-a-smoke-and-tobacco-free-campus/
WSU. (2016). Smoking and tobacco use policy. Retrieved May 20, 2016, from
https://www.vancouver.wsu.edu/safety-plan/smoking-and-tobacco-use-policy
