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Dr. Kim Mulvihill ReportingA new report says that non-smoking section you may be sitting in isn't enough to protect you from second hand smoke, and the involuntary smoke you and your children are breathing may be more dangerous than you think.
Now the Surgeon General is calling for a complete ban on smoking in restaurants and workplaces.
Sixteen-year-old Amit Bushan knows firsthand what secondhand smoke can do, after a visit to a smoky bowling alley triggered a severe asthma attack.
Amit Bushan, Asthma Sufferer: "I was really angry and you know, I said, 'Why do I have to go through this all the time?'"
So he started a campaign to make restaurants in his hometown of Lubbock, Texas smoke free. What he may not have known is how many other lives the smoke-free laws could be saving. In a new report, the surgeon general says there's no such thing as "risk free" secondhand smoke. Even a few minutes can cause dangerous side effects. And he says the only way to control it is to ban all smoking in work and public places.
Dr. Richard Carmona, US Surgeon General: "There are so many people out there with the misconception that, well if I'm only in the room a little while, it's not a big deal. If I breathe a little smoke it's not a big deal. It IS a big deal; this is BAD toxic stuff!"
According to the surgeon general, at least 60 percent of US nonsmokers show some signs of exposure. 3400 nonsmoking Americans die from lung cancer every year. And babies exposed to smoke are at a much higher risk for sudden infant death syndrome.
Dr. Jonathon Samet, Johns Hopkins University: "Now we know also that exposure after birth, that fathers smoking, other adults smoking also causes SIDS."
For kids like Amit Sushan, it can literally be a life and death choice, but the report brings him hope more cities will go smoke free. He says it's only then he'll breathe easier."
A spokesperson for tobacco giant RJ Reynolds did not question any of the medical studies that went into this report. But he said small business owners of restuarants and bars should have the right to decide if they will allow smoking. Just as customers have a right to either visit the establishment or stay away.
Fourteen states have passed smoke-free workplace laws that include restaurants and bars. Some are now hoping congress will pass a federal law banning smoking in public places.
