Many smokers: Secondhand smoke not harmful

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WASHINGTON, Sept. 28 (UPI) -- A U.S. survey indicates 28 percent of smokers say secondhand smoke is very harmful to adults, compared with 63 percent of non-smokers.

Gallup's annual Consumption Habits poll, conducted July 9-12, found 46 percent of smokers said secondhand smoke was somewhat harmful, while nearly 1-in-4 said secondhand smoke was not too or not at all harmful.

Studies suggest secondhand smoke exposure increases the risk of developing many of the same fatal illnesses as smoking, and 27 states have passed comprehensive smoke-free laws.

Eighty percent of U.S. adults agreed smoking was very harmful to smokers -- levels that have remained consistent over the past decade -- but smokers were consistently less likely than non-smokers to view smoking as harmful since Gallup began asking this question.

U.S. adults were significantly more likely to say smoking was harmful than they were to say the same for exposure to secondhand smoke. This gap remained steady over the past decade, despite a growing number of studies demonstrating the harmful effects of secondhand smoke, Gallup said.

The survey, based on the sample of 166 smokers, has a maximum margin of error of 10 percentage points.