Casinos have long been the final bastion for public smokers, but it looks like the new temporary smoking ban might change that. In response to COVID-19, many casinos have instituted temporary bans on smoking, and we think that’s best for everyone. Smoking is a dangerous habit, and the belief that second-hand smoke doesn’t affect non-smokers is completely untrue. Second-hand smoke is linked to thousands of deaths annually and millions of dollars in public health costs. It is a real threat to our communities.
Let’s look closer at this temporary smoking ban in casinos and see what positive aspects it has to offer. The decision was made in an effort to thwart the spread of COVID-19 and not expose non-smokers to the dangers of second-hand smoke. Since COVID-19 causes respiratory problems, smoking can increase the likelihood that such complications develop in the victim.
1. Less Exposure To Second-Hand Smoke
Let’s address this issue of second-hand smoke head-on and crush some unfounded beliefs that it’s harmless. According to Cleveland Clinic, The CDC, Lung.org, Cancer.org, and several studies published in the National Library of Medicine, second-hand smoke is a deadly toxin that can cause many of the same ailments that affect first-hand smokers.
Second-hand smoke has been linked to heart disease, lung cancer and disease, hypertension, and more, and every single year we lose thousands of people to second-hand smoke complications. There’s a reason smoking has been largely banned in public places across the country, and it’s not simply because it smells bad.
Casinos may have banned smoking in response to COVID-19, but we can hope that the ban will remain in place. Smoking indoors only amplifies the effects of second-hand smoke! With alternative products like tobaccoless chew (like on https://blackbuffalo.com/), vape pens, CBD, and herbal cigarettes, there’s no reason to continue smoking.
2. Smoking and COVID-19
The COVID-19 virus is a Coronavirus, so named for its crown shape (the prefix “Corona” means crown). This virus can cause respiratory disease and complications, and usually affects people with compromised immune symptoms or pre-existing respiratory illness the most. That being said, a completely healthy individual could still develop complications from the virus.
Smokers get double the risk, considering their immune systems and respiratory systems are compromised from smoking. The chemicals in cigarettes coat the lungs, red blood cells, and blood vessels. This makes it difficult to deliver fresh, clean oxygen to organs and tissues and causes the heart to work that much harder to perform everyday tasks. Not to mention, you’re essentially putting your body in a constant state of defense when you breathe in toxic chemicals, making it difficult to fight off even the most minor infections.
3. A Cleaner Environment
Smoking has a way of damaging surfaces, sticking to upholstery, and generally compromising the air quality inside a building or a general area. A cleaner environment is definitely a positive aspect of the temporary casino ban. After all, who wants to be inside an establishment that has a lingering smell of stale cigarettes?
Even if smokers are designated to an outdoor area, cigarette butts are still the world’s most littered item, accounting for millions of tons of litter annually. That’s a disturbing fact, and cigarette butts on the ground are certainly an eyesore.
More than that, however, they’re a danger to waterways and ecosystems. Those thousands of chemicals inside the cigarette still seep into the ground, waterways, and affect flora and fauna. Such neglect comes at the detriment of other species and the only planet we have to call home.
4. More Business
Casinos will likely find that they attract more business with a smoking ban. It’s one thing to keep individual liberties in mind, but when you show any interest in public health and safety, you’re probably going to attract more customers. Since second-hand smoking is a public health hazard, casinos could very well be putting their own customers at risk by allowing smoking.
A clean, smoke-free environment simply makes for a better casino experience. You can enjoy your Blackjack, Craps, or other games without the incessant smell of cigarettes, the mess of cigarette litter, and the risk of developing health complications.
5. More Awareness
When it comes to the dangers of smoking, you can never have too much awareness. Knowledge is what will help curb the smoking problem, and banning smoking in casinos helps to shed light on a worldwide problem we’ve neglected for too long. Millions of people still smoke, despite widespread knowledge of its ill effects. Maybe COVID-19 is the catalyst we need to curb the smoking problem in the US; it’s already helped about a million people quit in the UK.
Casinos have more power than they might realize to make positive change, and we can only hope that this pandemic helps us make widespread changes as a society for the betterment of our civilization.
