Inhalation of Hazardous Air Pollutants from Environmental Tobacco Smoke in US Residences

In the United States, 48 million adults smoke 3.5-5 × 1011 cigarettes per year. Many cigarettes are smoked in private residences causing regular environmental tobacco smoke (ETS) exposure to roughly 31million nonsmokers (11% of the US population), including 16 million juveniles.(Upper bound estimates are 53 million exposed nonsmokers including 28 million juveniles.) ETS contains many chemical species whose industrial emissions are regulated by the US federal government as hazardous air pollutants (HAPs). In this paper, average daily residential exposuresto and intakes of 16 HAPs in ETS are estimated for US nonsmokers who live with smokers. The evaluation is based on material-balance modeling; utilizes published data on smoking habits, demographics, and housing; and incorporates newly reported exposure-relevant emission factors. The ratio of estimated average exposure concentrations to reference concentrations is close to or greater than one for acrolein, acetaldehyde, 1,3-butadiene and formaldehyde, indicating potential for concern regarding noncancer health effects from chronic exposures. In addition, lifetime cancer risks from residential ETS exposure are estimated to be substantial (~ 2-500 per million) for each of five known or probable human carcinogens: acetaldehyde, formaldehyde, benzene, acrylonitrile, and 1,3-butadiene. Cumulative population intakes from residential ETS are compared for six key compounds against ambient sources of exposure. ETS is found to be adominant source of environmental inhalation intake for acrylonitrile and 1,3-butadiene. It is an important cause of intake for acetaldehyde, acrolein, and formaldehyde, and a significant contributor to intake for benzene.

This journal article was based on Proceedings of Indoor Air 2002, The 9th International Conference on Indoor Air Quality and Climate, Monterey, CA. (LBNL-50878.)