Doctors have proven that tobacco smoke can carry coronavirus

Droplets of saliva in tobacco smoke are small enough to remain suspended in the air. If a smoker is infected with COVID-19, then other people can become infected from him through puffs of smoke, they say COVID-19 and smoking: An opportunity to quit specialists of the Spanish Society of Pulmonology and Thoracic Surgery (Separ).

In smoking or vaping rooms, 0.1 micron coronavirus pathogens can bind to larger particles of tobacco smoke. These aerosols filled with viral particles can spread up to 8 m.

Scientists have called for a ban on smoking and vaping outdoors. In addition to protecting against the spread of COVID-19, the authors of the study see this as a reason to tighten the anti-tobacco law. They emphasized that tobacco smoke theoretically enhances the spread of other infections that are transmitted by airborne droplets.

The researchers added that harmful substances and particles come not only from exhaling a smoker and burning a cigarette, but also from cigarette butts and mixing these toxins with atmospheric gases. These chemicals "stick" to clothing, items, or other objects on decks. Residual traces are recorded in the smoker's exhalation even 10 minutes after he finished smoking the cigarette.

The authors of the work also recalled that smoking, including passive smoking, is associated with the risk of developing coronary heart disease, neoplasms, and exacerbation of chronic respiratory diseases.