I have always admired those who have a commanding knowledge of the world of chemistry. They can synthesize anything and have an abundance of handy hints from Eloise-type knowledge. (Did you know that if you’re out of dishwashing powder you can substitute tetra sodium phosphate? But don’t try this at home, just go buy Calgon.)

Chemistry, especially the organic flavor, was the albatross of my college classes. Ironically, my first job after graduation was as a chemist.

Thus, just one year removed from the “sulfur-scented” hallways of Brackett Hall, I was once again shaking beakers and assembling glassware to effectively contain exothermic chemical reactions and prevent explosions in the real world of chemical manufacturing. The environmental movement didn’t move very fast, so 10 years later, I was a bonafide chemist who belonged to the American Chemical Society.

Those chemical memories returned today as I read a study on the hazards of “third hand smoke”. It reminded me of my organic chemistry final exam because it had enough supporting information to give my chemistry professors group migraines.

The study shows that when residual nicotine from tobacco smoke is absorbed by indoor surfaces, there is a reaction with ambient nitrous oxide to produce tobacco specific nitrosamines (TSNA’s) which are carcinogenic. If you’re planning on handling TSNA’s be sure to do it in a fume hood with ventilation and wear OSHA approved personal protective equipment (nitrile gloves, goggles, impervious lab suit).

Some places where TSNA’s can be found are car interiors, furniture, clothing, restaurant menus, food and human skin. This lingering residue, called “third hand smoke”, can get into the body by absorption through the skin, by inhaling dust particles in the room or eating an apple in the room where someone has smoked.

If you are a smoker who says, “I don’t smoke around my kids / family” you should take the following precautions. Don’t smoke around food or in an enclosed space where anyone may enter later (car, private office). After smoking, bathe, wash your hair and put on fresh clothes before picking up a baby or giving lap time to a toddler. Throw away any footwear that cannot be washed.

Or, you could become a nonsmoker. A good place to start is to call the South Carolina Tobacco Quitline (1-800-QUIT NOW).

As the saying goes, where there’s smoke there’s toxic residue.

Pardon the pun, but it is “high time” we take back the day and focus on the “Drug-Free” message and put an end to their misguided attempts to glamorize a drug that, contrary to their claims, is a harmful, addictive substance. Everyone but, especially, parents should be very aware of this day and the promotion that takes place. If your children recognize this day, then you may have a problem and need to have a very focused discussion about this drug that is being pushed by a few extremely wealthy individuals, the pro-drug lobby, and those who want to legally use and sell marijuana.

April 20th is a very special day in the lives of many people who celebrate their birthday or anniversary and I fall into that category. It is my wedding anniversary and the most important and memorable day in my life. It is ironic that the very day I will always remember, the day that started me on the most wonderful and meaningful journey of my life is also linked to this illegal propaganda message. It is sad that the date is hijacked by a destructive message about which there is nothing to celebrate. Numerous studies have repeatedly linked marijuana use to birth defects, respiratory system damage, cancer, mental illness, violence, infertility, and immune system damage and yet they so easily promote this to our children as the day to “light up” and take the chance to ruin your life. The latest information from the “U.S. Treatment Episode Data Set” reports that 16.1% of drug treatment admissions had marijuana as the primary drug of abuse, compared to 6% in 1992.

Can anyone explain or justify that smoking “anything” is a good or healthy activity and something to celebrate? I don’t think so, yet many keep pushing pro-drug legislation to justify their “pipe dream” of legalization. 420 can be a wonderful day to celebrate and begin a conversation with our children about the truth of how beautiful life can be without the chains of addiction or the cost and pain of dysfunction cause by marijuana use. While I celebrate my 45th wedding anniversary, I will also celebrate all the young people in this world who strive to live the good life—a drug-free life. This is not an action that will cost anyone a penny - it is an action that can save someone’s future and it may be your child or a child you know. What a wonderful return on an investment in our future!

Parents, we can take back April 20th and show the world we do strive to reach our full potential! If you would like more information about talking to your kids about drugs, please check out our website, visit our resource center or call us at 864.467.4099

So now, John stood before me, smelling of tobacco, his eyes watering with desperation as we talked.

John could remember with impressive recall the details of smoking that first cigarette.  It was just one. He had finally caved to pressure applied by his friend. They were 15 years old so there was plenty of time to quit. Old people who smoked were just too weak to quit. Before long,  he had become a daily smoker.

At first, it made him sick, but he was not about to give up smoking and face the horrors of harassment from his pals. To a teen, quitting would be worse than admitting you like your parent's music.

So, one a day became five. Then within a year, he was abounding with coolness and was smoking a pack a day. It cost a bit, but it was still cheaper than popcorn and soda at the movies, where he admired Audrey Hepburn and Cary Grant as they smoked what seemed like an endless chain of cigarettes.  And they didn't look sick as Granddad.

Fortunately, thousands of people have quit. For John, it will be his battle to win.  There's help: counseling, medications, hypnosis, support groups, etc. but they do not guarantee success.

Regina Benjamin, M.D, the current Surgeon General, has stated that nearly all tobacco use begins during youth.  No surprise there. We can make future generations tobacco-free if we engage them at an early age with prevention programs that focus on the social, environmental, advertising and marketing influences.

Let's create a world where seeing people smoke or use tobacco products is the exception, not the norm.

Let's do it for John's grandkids.

In one of our parenting classes, we have parents watch a video that shows why smoking around their kids is a bad idea and exactly what secondhand smoke does to a child in a way that most parents will understand. Even though this video forces parents to take a hard look at how their smoking affects their kids, after watching it only a few parents are actually concerned enough to consider changing their behavior by stopping smoking around their kids; smoking only outside the home; cutting down on their smoking; or actually quitting smoking.

Apparently, an eye-opening video isn’t enough to make the majority of parents see their smoking habit as actually detrimental to the health of their own kids. It’s as if they still see it as a matter of their own prerogative about what they will or won’t do with their own bodies but it’s more than that – not only is it a decision about whether or not parents will smoke themselves, it’s also a decision about whether or not their kids will smoke along with them.

This is my opinion, but it seems to me that some parents don’t really want to examine their own behavior in relation to raising their kids. They don’t think they need to quit smoking because their own behavior has nothing to do with raising their kids. They think that “parenting” involves telling their kids what they can and cannot do and not modeling positive behavior for their children, including quitting smoking or not smoking at all.

I believe it is contradictory to think that children can be healthy and drug-free if they are raised in an environment in which there is smoking and ongoing nicotine use.

http://ac360.blogs.cnn.com/2011/10/05/bullying-it-stops-here/