|
April 1999
Second Wind
Lomita, California
Dear Friends:
This morning I gave a talk to the
Optimists Club in Wheatridge, a suburb of Denver. A member of
this club is a college colleague of mine who frequently asks me
to talk to this group about lung health matters. Today, I spoke
on the subject entitled, "Seduced
by Smoking". My message was how
effective the tobacco industry has been, and still is, in enticing
teenagers into the bondage of nicotine addiction through their
promotion of tobacco. For many years, the tobacco industry has
literally seduced teenagers into believing that smoking is healthy,
attractive, sexy, and the
in thing to do. Their success is measured by the fact that every
day, 3,000 teenagers take up the smoking habit. These kids replace
those who die of the smoking-related diseases, i.e., about 430,000
patients a year, and those who are successful in quitting.
In the discussion period, there were
many questions about the health hazards of passive smoking. I
cited the increased risk of lung cancer in non-smoking spouses
of smokers, school absenteeism, increased ear infections, and
worsening asthma in children with one or more parents who smoke.
I cited an interesting report of the improved health of California
bartenders where, in the past year smoking was prohibited in these
establishments. There has been a successful lawsuit on behalf
of airlines cabin attendants, judging that they were victims of
passive smoking during their service on transcontinental and overseas
flights. This class-action suite, known as Broin vs. Philip Morris
et al, resulted in a huge settlement on behalf of the plaintiffs.
In the discussion, a veterinarian
pointed out that cats and dogs brought in with bronchitis and
asthma are also victims of environmental tobacco smoke in the
homes of their masters. Dr. Ann Brandenberg Schroeder, a specialist
in veterinary medicine, who directs a pet imaging center in Denver,
said that the first thing that she does when a pet gets sick with
bronchitis or asthma is to smell the animal for traces of cigarette
smoke. I suggested to her that she might be able to measure exhaled
carbon monoxide in these animals, or even creatinine in the urine
enough to prove the point for scientific publication.
Not only mankind, but even man's
best friend, succumb
to the ravages of tobacco toxicity, and yet the tobacco industry
steadfastly denies that there is any connection between tobacco
and disease. The buzzards keep flying around the Dade County Courthouse
for good reasons (see February, 1999 newsletter).
I will be in touch next month.
Your friend,
Thomas Petty, MD
|
