Healthy Homes: Eliminate Tobacco Smoke

Step 1: Learn about smoke and asthma

  • Smoking around children will make their asthma worse.

  • Tobacco smoke can cause asthma to develop in non-affected children.

  • Smoke irritates the lungs and can trigger severe asthma attacks even in non-allergic children.

  • When smoking in the home, it takes only 15 minutes for the tobacco smoke to reach every room in the house.

  • When smoking outside, tobacco smoke can be carried inside your home through open windows and doors.

 

Step 2: Take action

  1. Free help is available. If the smoker(s) in your house are ready to quit smoking, there is a free program available called Quit Line. This program has helped thousands of people quit smoking through its combination of coaching and free nicotine replacement therapy. You can contact Quit Line at 1.800.QUIT NOW (1.800.784.8669).

  2. If the smoker(s) in your house continue to smoke, implement a family rule of no smoking indoors or in vehicles with or without your children.

  3. Make sure all outdoor smoking is done away from open windows and doors of your home.

  4. Make sure smokers wear different clothes, such as a "smoking jacket or shirt," that is only worn when smoking outside the home and is kept outside the home as well.

  5. Make sure smokers wash their hands after smoking and before feeding or interacting with children.

  6. Remove all ashtrays from your home.

  7. Make your child’s bedroom a smoke-free area by removing carpet and upholstered furniture that was present while smoking was allowed in the home.

  8. Wash all bedding, pillows and window coverings to remove tobacco smoke residue.

  9. Clean walls and hard surfaces with soap and water to remove tobacco smoke.