Second-hand smoke is a peril that many Palo Alto students face everyday.
Nowhere is exposure to second-hand smoke more obvious than in front of every doorway at Palo Alto
According to the World Health Organization 10 million people will die from tobacco-related diseases by the year 2025, opposed to the 3 million deaths in the 1990s. The American Heart Association’s 2000 Heart and Stroke Statistical Update states that 430,700 Americans die each year from illnesses associated with smoking.
The American Heart Association also states that non-smokers exposed to second-hand smoke increase their chances of developing asthmatic attacks, emphysema, lung cancer and heart disease.
The association estimates that 37,000 to 40,000 people die every year from heart and blood vessel disease caused by second-hand smoke.
The Americans for Nonsmokers’ Rights Foundation states that the third leading cause of preventable death in the United States is second-hand smoke. The foundation also states that there is no safe level of exposure.
Leandro M. Esparza, Director of Student Activities, said that the state law prohibits smoking inside the buildings, which is why every bench, patio or outdoors is considered an optional smoking area. Currently, there are no specific regulations for smoking outside.
Esparza said that from time to time complaints about smokers standing in front of the doorways are submitted to the Student Activities Center. The problem is that there are very few shaded areas outside, and the ones that are shaded just happen to be in the doorway.
Marc Gonzalez, a freshman at Palo Alto majoring in Communications, frequently smokes outside the General Education Building. Gonzalez said, “If smokers were given a better place to go that was shaded, I would smoke there.”
There are no smoking or second-hand smoking education programs at Palo Alto, but Stacey Sylman, health coordinator for the college, said that she is planning to start an educational program to stop smoking, referred to as a cessation program.
Anthony Pierulla, a counselor at Palo Alto, thinks that students’ right to smoke outside on campus will not change anytime soon, but with knowledge on the subject, the acceptance of smoking will soon change.
“Students have the opportunity to voice their concerns. We will see that the complaints are directed to the proper administration," said Esparza.