A lot of second-hand smoke studies are completely overblown and probably financed by lawyers in order to sue the tobacco companies. I wouldn’t be too concerned.
If you’re receiving information from your doctor, or any medical doctor, they aren’t saying it. The insurance company is.
Doctors can’t say what they want to say. They have to say what insurance regulates them to say.
That said, I just quit smoking yesterday. 25 years. I had to quit mostly because I’ve learned that I’m immortal anymore.
I have no side-effects from smoking, I smoked “only a few a day” to add up to about a pack a week. So it’s not like I was all-in on the habit.
Second hand smoke is actually the same level of danger as lead paint and radon exposure. Carcinogens from the tobacco lay on surfaces and then get picked up by the skin, where contamination is an issue.
When it comes to second hand smoke - like, being around people who are smoking - I used to live downtown in my small town. I lived on main street. The sides of my building, as well as my windows, were CAKED with smudge and exhaust particles at the end of each day. Walking the sidewalks in a small town is just as bad for you as being around a smoker who is smoking.
I actually quit because my blood pressure suddenly went insane. About 2 weeks ago my normally steady BP just jumped 60 points in each sys/dia reading. So doctors are working with me to figure out why. It turns out a single hotdog will raise my bp by 20 points. A single cigarette will raise it as well. I guess that’s just the way my body functions now.
So I had to quit for the blood pressure thing. I figure it’s a good idea anyway, successful people tend not to smoke and I should emulate their behavior more than the behavior of my smoking kin who regularly complain about BS and have go-no where lives.