Secondhand smoke exposure kills 53,000 American every year, according to the National Cancer Institute. Contributed photo

Take a deep breath. You just inhaled more than 4,000 chemicals – 60 of which are known or suspected to cause cancer – if you’re in a public place or workplace in Texas that still allows smoking.

Secondhand smoke is a known killer. It’s the third leading preventable cause of death in the United States. Yet Texans in just 14 communities breathe smoke-free air in all public indoor places, thanks to local ordinances. Another 33 communities have smoke-free ordinances that include some exceptions.

All Texans deserve to breathe smoke-free indoor air when they’re out in public. That’s why Smoke-Free Texas is asking the Texas Legislature to pass a comprehensive smoke-free law that covers the entire state.

State Sen. Rodney Ellis (D-Houston) has filed such a proposal, Senate Bill 368. If passed, Texas would join 16 other states with a comprehensive smoke-free law. Sixty-six percent of Texans support a comprehensive, statewide smoke-free law that would prohibit smoking in all indoor workplaces and public facilities including public buildings, offices, restaurants and bars, according to a recent poll conducted by Baselice and Associates and commissioned by Smoke-Free Texas, a coalition that includes the American Cancer Society, American Heart Association, American Lung Association and Texas PTA.

The health dangers of secondhand smoke are undeniable – exposure kills 53,000 Americans every year, according to the National Cancer Institute. Cancer, heart disease, chronic asthma, bronchitis, low birth weight – I could recite statistic after statistic about the diseases or medical conditions caused in adults and children by secondhand smoke.

In fact, “scientific evidence indicates there is no risk-free level of exposure to secondhand smoke,” according to the 2006 U.S. Surgeon General report, the most comprehensive scientific report ever produced on the health impact of secondhand smoke.

What is being debated is how to protect the public from these dangers.

Some believe it’s acceptable to allow smoking in special smoking sections or rooms with separate ventilation systems. The American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air Conditioning Engineers has said that these ventilation systems can’t remove all of the harmful chemicals from the air.

Others believe smoking should be allowed in bars. But what about employees who work long shifts in smoky environments or even nonsmokers who want to enjoy an evening out? Levels of secondhand smoke are four to six times higher in bars and restaurants that allow smoking than in other worksites.

Why safeguard some Texans and not others? The only way to protect everyone from the health hazards of secondhand smoke is to completely eliminate their exposure to secondhand smoke.

Smoke-free policies are the “most economic and effective approach for providing protection from exposure to secondhand smoke,” according to the U.S. Surgeon General.

About 22 percent of Texans smoke. They have the right to smoke, but the other 78 percent have the right to safe air in public places.

While the city-by-city approach to passing smoke-free ordinances has been a great first step, a statewide law is needed.

City ordinances do not extend to the 5.6 million Texans who live in unincorporated areas. In addition, not all city public smoking ordinances are strong enough to fully protect the public health – some exempt workplaces, bars, or restaurants.

Restaurant and bar owners concerned about losing money by eliminating smoking have nothing to fear. Extensive analyses of sales tax data for Texas cities and studies analyzed by the U. S. Surgeon General’s report do not reflect a decline in business since going smoke-free.

By contrast, businesses that allow smoking are paying a price. Secondhand smoke costs the United States an estimated $10 billion a year in health care bills, lost wages and other costs, according to an August 2005 study by the Society of Actuaries.

Secondhand smoke costs all Texans, whether it’s our health or our business. It’s time to stop paying this price by passing a statewide, comprehensive smoke-free law.

Dr. Mark Clanton is former deputy director for the National Cancer Institute and chief medical staff officer for the High Plains Division of the American Cancer Society.