The risks from others' smoke Smokers affect not only their own health but the health of those around them. Women who smoke during pregnancy are more likely to lose the fetus through spontaneous abortion. Babies born to smoking mothers in high-income countries are significantly more likely than the babies of nonsmokers to have a low birth weight and up to 35 percent more likely to die in infancy. They also face higher risks of respiratory disease. Recent research has shown that a carcinogen found only in tobacco smoke is present in the urine of newborn babies born to smokers.
Cigarette smoking accounts for much of the health disadvantage of babies born to poorer women.
Among white women in the United States, smoking alone has been found to be responsible for 63 percent of the difference in birth weight between babies born to college-educated women and babies born to those who received a high school education or less. Adults exposed chronically to others' tobacco smoke also face small but real risks of lung cancer and higher risks of cardiovascular disease, while the children of smokers suffer a range of health problems and functional limitations. Nonsmokers who are exposed to smoke include the children and the spouses of smokers, mostly within their own homes. Also, a substantial number of nonsmokers work with smokers, or in smoky environments, where their expo-sure over time is significant. Quitting works The earlier a smoker starts, the greater the risk of disabling illnesses.