Businesses clear the air in Mt. Pleasant

MT. PLEASANT — Seven Mt. Pleasant businesses joined forces to clear the air by committing to tobacco and nicotine free workplaces this fiscal year.

“There is no safe level of exposure to secondhand smoke,” the Henry County Divison of Tobacco Use Prevention and Control (DTUPC) site says. “That is why we help multi unit housing complexes, work sites, and schools develop smoke free policies that help prevent any exposure to secondhand smoke.”

The Henry County DTUPC works to reduce tobacco use and the toll of tobacco-caused disease and death by educating, assisting and preventing the harms of smoking and second hand smoke.

According to Tobacco Prevention Coordinator Chris Kempker, “The Smoke Free Air Act, which celebrated its 14th anniversary in 2022, prohibits smoking in places of employment; however it does not extend to smokeless tobacco. That means products like vape pens or e-cigarettes are legal to use unless a business implements a tobacco and nicotine free policy.”

Mt. Pleasant Childcare Center, Brown’s Shoe Fit, Nikki K’s Dance, Salon Monroe, Etc., Chamber of Commerce, and Henry County Public Health have chosen to take a more firm stance on nicotine and tobacco use by adopting tobacco and nicotine free workplace policies.

Not only do these types of policies discourage additional uses of nicotine and tobacco, but they go a long way to deter youth by affirming that vapes do actually contain harmful chemicals.

“Nearly all e-cigarettes contain nicotine,” the Iowa Department of Public Health (IDPH) website says.

According to IDPH, “E-cigarette use poses a significant — and avoidable — health risk to young people in the United States. Besides increasing the possibility of addiction and long-term harm to brain development and respiratory health, e-cigarette use is associated with the use of other tobacco products that can do even more damage to the body. Even breathing e-cigarette aerosol that someone else has exhaled poses potential health risks.”

“Risks [of vaping] include nicotine addiction, mood disorders, and permanent lowering of impulse control,” IDPH website states. “Nicotine also changes the way synapses are formed, which can harm the parts of the brain that control attention and learning.”

Work places taking firmer stances against nicotine and tobacco use is especially important due to second hand smoke from e-cigarettes being a trigger for both kids and adults with breathing problems like asthma.

For those wishing to take personal steps to reducing second hand smoke by quitting, there are resources.

Quitline Iowa is available to chat at their website or via phone at 1-800-QUIT-NOW.

Teens and young adults can reach out to the free youth tobacco cessation program made especially for teens, My Life My Quit.

To reach My Life My Quit text “Start My Quit” or call 855-891-9989

Comments: AnnaMarie.Ward@southeastiowaunion.com