Voa Science Report - Health Experts Say Smokers Need a Cigarette Break -- Permanently

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ONE: This is SCIENCE IN THE NEWS in VOA Special English. Im Bob Doughty. VOICE TWO: And Im Faith . On our program this week, some new information about tobacco smoke ---- and its not good news. (MUSIC) VOICE : Few people would argue that tobacco smoke is good for you. For more than forty years, scientists have said smoking can cause serious health problems. But today, smokers and people who do not smoke often argue about smoking the workplace. Many non-smokers would like to have smoking banned where they work. They fear harmful effects from other tobacco smoke, also known as secondhand smoke. Business owners often say a ban on smoking would harm their profits. , smokers say such a ban would interfere with their rights. In the United States, secondhand smoke causes about three non-smoking adults to die of lung cancer each year. That information comes from a private group, the American Cancer . VOICE TWO: Recently, the American Journal of Public Health published two reports about secondhand smoke. The Multnomah County Health in Oregon and the Oregon Department of Human Services organized one study. The University of Minnesota Cancer Center in assisted them. The study involved eighty-four non-smokers who worked at restaurants and drinking places in Oregon. Thirty-two worked in that banned smoking. Fifty-two others worked in businesses that permitted smoking. Most worked as servers or prepared drinks. Two of those studied were women. The researchers asked the non-smokers about how much time they had spent around smokers away from work. The breath of the workers was tested to make sure they had not been smoking. VOICE : Then the researchers tested liquid wastes from the workers. They found a substance called NNAL in the urine. NNAL a byproduct of NNK, a chemical found only in tobacco products. Other studies have linked NNK to lung cancer. time, scientists have identified more than sixty chemicals in tobacco smoke that cause cancer in people and animals. The tested the urine of the workers before they started their jobs and again as they finished. Those working where was permitted were more likely to have NNK in their urineThe study did not deal with whether secondhand smoke health problems in nonsmokers. But last year, the evidence against secondhand smoke caused America's top medical officer to advise smoking in buildings. (MUSIC) VOICE TWO: The second report in the American Journal of Public Health came from the Health Institute in California. The Public Health Institute is a nonprofit organization that says businesses should be free of . The Institute says employers must keep workplaces safe for employees. It tells employers that they are open to legal if their environment harms workers. Margaret Chan is director-general of the World Health Organization. She has urged all countries pass laws banning smoking in workplaces. Businesses are not the only places where secondhand smoke is a threat. People smoke at home should think about the health of others living with them. The American Cancer Society says secondhand causes lung infections in as many as three hundred thousand young children each year. (MUSIC) VOICE ONE: The WHO... that smoking is responsible for the deaths of five million people each year. At current rates, it says tobacco could kill ten million people a year by two thousand twenty. Smoking by pregnant women can threaten the unborn. mothers are more likely to have babies with health problems and low birth weight. Babies with low weight at have an increased risk of dying young. They may also suffer health problems. VOICE TWO: Older smokers are also risk. A study in the publication Neurology showed that older adults who smoke face an increased risk of Alzheimers . Decreased mental health also was more likely in persons who smoked than in non-smokers-. Alzheimers patients lose ability to , plan and organize. After a time they become unable to care for themselves. Researchers in the Netherlands studied almost thousand adults aged fifty-five years or older. Seven hundred six of the adults developed dementia during the seven years the study. Dementia is a condition that causes a decrease in a person's thinking ability. Persons who smoked during study were fifty percent more likely to develop dementia than those who never smoked or had stopped. VOICE ONE: people know that smoking causes lung cancer. But it also has been proven to be a major cause of of the mouth, esophagus, kidney, bladder and pancreas. Cigarettes are not the only danger. Smokeless tobacco and cigars also been linked to cancer. But these facts are not enough to prevent people from smoking. The American Cancer Society there is no safe way to smoke. It says smoking begins to cause damage immediately. All cigarettes can damage body. Smoking even a few cigarettes is dangerous. (MUSIC) VOICE TWO: Nicotine is a substance in tobacco that gives to smokers. Nicotine is a poison. The American Cancer Society says nicotine can kill a person when taken in amounts. It does this by stopping the muscles used for breathing. The body grows to depend on nicotine. When former smoker smokes a cigarette, the nicotine reaction may start again. This forces the person to keep smoking. Studies found that nicotine can be as difficult to resist as alcohol or the drug cocaine. So experts say it better never to start smoking than it is to smoke with the idea of stopping later. VOICE ONE: Experts menthol cigarettes are no safer than other tobacco products. Menthol cigarettes produce a cool feeling in the smokers throat. people can hold the smoke in their lungs longer than smokers of other products. As a result, experts say cigarettes may be even more dangerous than other cigarettes. Other smokers believe that cigarettes with low tar levels are . Tar is a substance produced when tobacco leaves are burned. It is known to cause cancer. America's National Cancer has said people who smoke low-tar cigarettes do not reduce their risk of getting diseases linked to smoking. Scientists no evidence of improvements to public health from changes in cigarette design and production in the past fifty years. TWO: Is there no way to smoke without harming your health? The American Cancer Society does not think so. group wants people to stop or at least reduce smoking. For this reason it organizes the Great American Smokeout year. The event takes place in November. Local volunteers support the efforts of individuals who want to stop smoking. American Cancer Society says blood pressure returns to normal twenty minutes after the last cigarette. Carbon monoxide gas levels the blood return to normal after eight hours. The chance of heart attack decreases after one day. After one , the risk of heart disease for a non-smoker is half that of a smoker. VOICE ONE: There are products to help people reduce their dependence on cigarettes. Several kinds of nicotine replacement products provide small amounts of the . These can help people stop smoking. Experts also say a drug used to treat depression has helped smokers. The is called Zyban. It does not contain nicotine. It works by increasing levels of dopamine in the brain. Dopamine a chemical that produces pleasure. VOICE TWO: Here is some advice from people who have stopped smoking: Stay away alcoholic drinks. Take a walk instead of smoking a cigarette. Avoid people who are smoking. If possible, stay away situations that trouble you. It is not easy to stop smoking. And people never can completely control their own . But as one doctor advises her patients, becoming a non-smoker is one way to gain control of your life. ( ) VOICE ONE: This SCIENCE IN THE NEWS was written by Jerilyn Watson. Brianna Blake was our producer. Im Bob . VOICE TWO: And Im Faith Lapidus. Read and listen to our programs at voaspecialenglishcom.. Join us again next week more news about science in Special English on the Voice of America.

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