Tobacco Documents Online

AN DOCUMENT- 4 OF 28' PAGE = 1i OF 3 USAT4592'7 HL Airlines offer coffee, tea, and carcinogens. DD Byline: Credit: 10/05'/87' Stanton A. Glantz Guest columnist SO USA TODAY ( USiAT )' Edition: Section: Page: FINAL NRW& 06A Category: ICopyrig,ht Opilnio,n 7989) TX Stanton A. Glantz is professor of medicine at the University of California, San Francisco and past president of Americans for Non-Sinokers Rli ghts . SANiFRAN'CISCp - Dramatic pictures of plane crashPS in Which hundreds of peopl'e die hias stimulate&concern about air safety. Ironically, however, the greater danger, to the 1.1, m;illii'on pennle who; s fly every day occurs when the ''no smaking"' sign goes off and the air fills with toxic chiemicalls. while not as dramatic as a crash;, these chemicalis slowly DOCC.'MEA?T_' 4 OF' 28' PAGE c 2 OF 3 poison everyone utio breathes them. In fact, secondhand cigarette smoke is the leading source of toxic chemical exposure for most people. Cigarette smoke contains thousands of chemicalls, includling poisons l ike formaldehyde, carbon, monoxide, hydrogen cyalni'dle, t:he addictive d'rug nicotine, and!potent carcinogens. That these toxinss endanger smokers has been accepted for more than 20 years. Nos:, the scientific community has concludedt that cigarette smoke also endangers non-amokers. The National Academy of Sciences - the most prestigious scientific body in the world - and the U.S., surgeon general have both i'ssued'mafor reports on the effects of * inti•oluntarv smoking. These reports concluded': ~ -Invol~untary smoking causes disease, including cancer in non-smokers. s -Involuntary smoking'is bad for children; it increases the rate of respiratory probllems and slows lung development. -Simply separating smokers and non-smokers iine the same air space does not eliminate the danger. Since these reports were t published,, scientistwhave suggested that involuntary smoking causes heart disease in non-smokers.

DOCUMENiT= 4 OF' 28 PAGE = 3 OF 3' Cigarette companies have known for years that smokers might quit if they thought they were hurting innocent non-smokera. That"s why the,re's never smoke coming out of citarettes in the ads and why the cigarette companies have.spent millions trying to obscure the common-senae.truth that secondhand smoke poisons non-smokers. * Now,, the National Academy of Sciences has found' that low pressure, humidity, and recirculation of' cabin air make involiunt.art. smoking worse in the air than on the ground,. As a result, the # academ.- recommended that airline flii'ghts be smoke-free. Fortunately, the public! and its elected represent~+3.i.-es~ are listeni'ng. Air Canada ended smoking on alL its flights months aisco. * A few weeks ago, California ended smoking on all public transit in * the statp, including airlines. The House of' Representatives passedi a similar me.asurr endinia smnkina'on flights under two hours and is now consideriing an end to E t * smoking on all domestic fli'ghts. The Senate i's also considering these proposals. Congress.shouSd act so we can all breathe easier and fly more safely. Sub,i'Pcts : AI'RLITE :'.SMpKING : HEALTH END OF DOCUMENT