Tobacco Prevention

Target on Tobacco

In case you have some questions about the Minneapolis Clean-Air ordinance, the following are some clear answers to where you can or cannot smoke tobacco:

234.20 Prohibitions.

  • Indoor Smoking is prohibited in bowling alleys and pool and billiard halls and liquor and food establishments.
  • General Exceptions.  The prohibitions of this section do not apply to:
      • Guest rooms of a hotel or motel;
      • Outdoor spaces;
      • Locations where smoking is expressly authorized by state or federal law or rule; or
      • The use of tobacco as part of a recognized religious ritual or activity.

Here are some statistics you may not have known about Secondhand Smoke:

  • Toxins in Secondhand smoke include:
      • Ammonia
      • Arsenic
      • Benzene
      • Lead
      • Chromium VI
      • DDT
      • Formaldehyde
      • Hydrogen cyanide
      • Carbon monoxide (National Cancer Institute. Monograph No. 10. 1999; pp.14-16)
  • Secondhand smoke is a leading cause of preventable death in the U.S. (Mokdad, AH et al. “Actual Causes of Death in the United States, 2000.” JAMA. 2004; 291:1238-1245)
  • Secondhand smoking causes at least 38,000 deaths annually in the U.S. (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. “Annual smoking-attributable mortality, years of potential life lost, and productivity losses.”  MMWR. 2005; 54:625-628)
  • Secondhand smoke causes about 3,000 deaths in non-smokers annual from lung cancer. (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. “Annual smoking-attributable mortality, years of potential life lost, and productivity losses.”  MMWR. 2005; 54:625-628)
  • Secondhand smoke causes over one million illnesses in children each year in the U.S.:
      • Middle ear infections in children under age 3
      • Asthma
      • Lower respiratory infections, such as bronchitis and pneumonia, in children under age 18 months
      • Low birth weight
      • Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS) (National Cancer Institute. Monograph No. 10 1999; p. ES-4.)
  • Restaurant workers are exposed to over 1.5 times as much secondhand smoke as people who work in office settings where smoking is allowed. (Siegel & Skeer. “Exposure to secondhand smoke and excess lung cancer mortality risk among workers in the 5 B’s.”  Tobacco Control.  2003; 12: 333-338.)
  • Bar workers have over 7 times more exposure to secondhand smoke than workers in other settings.  (Siegel & Skeer. “Exposure to secondhand smoke and excess lung cancer mortality risk among workers in the 5 B’s.”  Tobacco Control.  2003; 12: 333-338.)