When someone is smoking in a car with the windows open, the level of
secondhand smoke is close to the level found in a smoky bar.

According to the El Paso County health department, if you close all the windows and turn the engine off, the smoke level skyrockets to more than eleven times that in a smoke-filled bar.

Lynette Reagan with the health department says as passengers, children can’t control whether they are exposed to smoke.

Children who are exposed to secondhand smoke are known to have more ear infections, coughs, asthma attacks and other types infections.

Pregnant moms who smoke, or are exposed to secondhand smoke, impair the lung function of their unborn child. The effects last into the teen-age years.

The effort to stop secondhand smoke in cars with unwitting victims starts in practice, and continues through spreading the word.

You can help by placing a reminder decal on the car window. The "Smoke-free Zone” decal is available from the Tobacco Education and Prevention Partnership at the El Paso County Health Department.

To get a Smoke-Free Zone decal, plate mats and other secondhand smoke information, call the Health Department at (719) 578-3196 or click on the link below to go to their website.