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Transfiguration is now Smoke Free
Together, with the support of the Parish Council, the parish staff and the Care of God’s Creation ministry, we are announcing that Church of the Transfiguration is now a SMOKE-FREE CAMPUS.
What does this mean for Transfiguration?
Smoking is not permitted within church buildings or anywhere on church grounds. We ask that if you choose to smoke, that you extinguish any form of smoking (cigarettes, cigars, pipes) before entering the church parking lot and not to discard butts and tobacco on church grounds.
Why is Transfiguration a SMOKE-FREE CAMPUS?
Transfiguration commits to implementing this policy for the overall health, welfare and safety of its members, staff and guests. Also, together with our neighboring schools, we join in their efforts to set the example for our children.
How will Transfiguration promote this new policy change?
Transfiguration will periodically publish articles in the bulletin and on our website to help encourage and educate our parishioners of the hazards of smoking and effects of second hand smoke.
Why is the Church of the Transfiguration a smoke-free campus?
Cigarette smoking has been identified as the most important source of preventable morbidity and premature mortality worldwide. According to recent figures from the American Lung Association, smoking-related diseases claim an estimated 450,000 American lives each year. In addition, smoking costs the United States approximately $167 billion each year in health-care costs, including $92 billion in mortality-related productivity losses. It is directly responsible for 87 percent of lung cancer cases and causes most cases of emphysema and chronic bronchitis.
What are the Effects of Second Hand Smoke?
Second hand smoke, also know as environmental tobacco smoke (ETS), is a mixture of the smoke given off by the burning end of a cigarette, pipe or cigar and the smoke exhaled from the lungs of smokers. It is involuntarily inhaled by nonsmokers, lingers in the air hours after cigarettes have been extinguished and can cause or exacerbate a wide range of adverse health effects, including cancer, respiratory infections, and asthma.
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Secondhand smoke has been classified by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) as a known cause of cancer in humans (Group A carcinogen).
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Secondhand smoke exposure causes disease and premature death in children and adults who do not smoke. Secondhand smoke contains hundreds of chemicals known to be toxic or carcinogenic, including formaldehyde, benzene, vinyl chloride, arsenic ammonia and hydrogen cyanide.
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Secondhand smoke causes approximately 3,400 lung cancer deaths and 22,700-69,600 heart disease deaths in adult nonsmokers in the United States each year.
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A study found that nonsmokers exposed to environmental smoke were 25 percent more likely to have coronary heart diseases compared to nonsmokers not exposed to smoke.
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Nonsmokers exposed to secondhand smoke at work are at increased risk for adverse health effects. Levels of ETS in restaurants and bars were found to be 2 to 5 times higher than in residences with smokers and 2 to 6 times higher than in office workplaces.
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Secondhand smoke is especially harmful to young children. Secondhand smoke is responsible for between 150,000 and 300,000 lower respiratory tract infections in infants and children under 18 months of age, resulting in between 7,500 and 15,000 hospitalizations each year, and causes 1,900 to 2,700 sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) deaths in the United States annually.
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Secondhand smoke exposure may cause buildup of fluid in the middle ear, resulting in 700,000 to 1.6 million physician office visits per year. Secondhand smoke can also aggravate symptoms in 400,000 to 1,000,000 children with asthma.
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The current Surgeon General's Report concluded that scientific evidence indicates that there is no risk-free level of exposure to second hand smoke. Short exposures to second hand smoke can cause blood platelets to become stickier, damage the lining of blood vessels, decrease coronary flow velocity reserves, and reduce heart rate variability, potentially increasing the risk of heart attack.
Thank you for not smoking at Transfiguration!
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