Evidence proving the chronic health problems that smoking causes dramatically changed society’s attitude toward the habit (eventually). Only a few decades ago, smokers were free to light up virtually anywhere. Today, in hundreds of U.S. cities, smoking is forbidden in or even near public spaces, both indoors and out.
Yet with all the effort made to curb exposure to tobacco smoke, the legacy of smoking lingers on in a substance called third hand smoke (THS).
Despite the name, THS is not really smoke but a chemical residue that smoking leaves behind. THS clings to walls, curtains, carpets, furniture, pet fur, clothing—pretty much anything that comes in close proximity to smoking tobacco product.
Exposure to these compounds have been shown in animal studies to cause lung and liver damage, diabetes symptoms, poor wound healing, and hyperactivity.
