Why Rent Smoke-Free 

     Renting within a smoke-free building or wing can protect you and your family from harmful exposure to secondhand smoke. Secondhand smoke or environmental tobacco smoke (ETS) is a complex mixture of chemicals produced by a lit tobacco product (cigarette, cigar, pipe) and from the smoke exhaled by a smoker. Secondhand smoke contains approximately 4,000 chemicals, 50 of which are known to cause cancer.

     ETS is not just a nuisance, but is a serious health risk and a leading cause of death and disease.  Each year in the United States, ETS exposure causes approximately 63,000 deaths due to heart disease in non-smokers and 3,000 lung cancer deaths in non-smokers. Secondhand smoke can also cause and worsen asthma, aggravate smoke allergies, and irritate the lungs of non-smokers. Because their lungs are still developing, children are particularly vulnerable to secondhand smoke exposure. Hundreds of thousands of children suffer from bronchitis, ear infections, and pneumonia caused by breathing secondhand smoke. Each year in the United States, up to 26,000 children develop asthma due to ETS exposure.
     Secondhand smoke knows no boundaries. Even if you don’t allow smoking in your own rental unit, other people’s smoke may seep into your home. ETS can seep into and out of open windows, through doorways, and shared ventilation systems. Smoke-free rental units, buildings, and buildings with smoke-free common areas are present in your area and may be available for rent. To protect yourself and your family from the harmful effects of secondhand smoke, rent “smoke-free”. 

Click here for landlords in your area that offer smoke-free units and buildings.