While the whole world is well aware of the dangers of first hand smoke (smoke inhaled directly through consumption of tobacco products) and second hand smoke (smoke produced by tobacco that is inhaled by others), a third type of smoke called third hand smoke is being put into focus by researchers from Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory. The study was published in the journal Atmospheric Environment.

The birth of third hand smoke

Common products in the market that claim to remove smoke and the characteristic odor of tobacco smoke from indoor air make use of ozone to accomplish this task.

While the system seemingly works by removing the odor, researchers from the Berkley Labs are pointing to a disturbing after-effect of using ozone: the nicotine that lingers in the air alongside other particles from tobacco smoke actually combine with the ozone and produce third hand smoke.

Third hand smoke is a type of residue from the smoke of tobacco products like cigars and cigarettes that is becomes deposited deep in the respiratory tract, causing oxidative stress and may cause the elderly and young children to suffer from asthma.

According to researcher Mohamad Sleiman, third hand smoke is composed of airborne articles that are less than a hundred nanometers in size.

Now, the smaller the particles in the air, the more readily such particles can be absorbed by the body - mainly, the respiratory tract. These particles can actually stay in the air far longer than plain second hand smoke, which doubles the risk for everyone in the home.

In earlier studies, it was found that second hand smoke from tobacco products also reacts with common indoor pollutants, which results in the formation of numerous known carcinogens or cancer-causing compounds. In addition to carcinogenic compounds, the reaction of nicotine also produced other substances in the air that posed a higher risk of causing cancer than nicotine itself.

The dangers of cigarette smoke does not stop with third hand smoke. Nicotine itself is capable of adhering to indoor surfaces and can be re-absorbed by children and adults through inhalation of dust and other fine, airborne particles.

Sources:
sciencedaily.com