From Fremont to Wallingford, from the University District to Phinney-Greenwood, it's rare to step into a restaurant and catch scent of cigarette smoke anymore. It's just not cool. For those who still consider cigarette smoke as an accompaniment to their meal - there's always Paris.
And yet smoking, or partial-smoking establishments, still exist in North Seattle.
Those holdouts and their statewide brethern have inspired the Washington State Department of Health to sponsor a Smoke-Free Sunday on May 15.
The department is urging residents across the state to show their support for smoke-free dining by patronizing those restaurants sporting a "100% Smoke Free" decal on their front door or window.
Website resource
The Department of Health also has launched a website for those statewide travelers who don't want to encounter cigarette smoke when they dine: www.SecondhandSmokesYou. com.
The web-based, interactive map lists some 5,500 smoke-free eating places statewide, including some taverns and bars. The site lists more than 80 smoke-free dining places in the 98103 ZIP code alone.
"Restaurants across the state are getting the message that going smoke-free is good for business," said Secretary of Health Mary Selecky in a prepared statement. "Of course, smoke-free restaurants are also good for everyone's health. Cigarette smoke is bad for customers and especially unhealthy for workers."
Secondhand smoke
The damning evidence against secondhand smoke is building.
According to the Washington State Department of Health, secondhand smoke increases a person's chance of lung cancer by 30 percent. Each year, it says, about 38,000 nonsmokers across the nation die of secondhand smoke.
Also, increases in asthma, bronchitis and pneumonia in kids under 18 months have been linked to secondhand smoke.
A breakdown of the toxins carried into the air by cigarette smoke is impressive. A few of these are benzene, found in rubber cement; formaldehyde, a staple of the embalmer's art; and arsenic, which helps give rat poison its kick.
Perhaps contrary to popular impression, cigarette smoking isn't as outre as some think. According to federal figures, only 3 percent of Americans gave up cigarettes between 1990 and 2003. In fact, approximately 22.5 percent of American adults - that's 46 million people - still smoke.
Being smokeless in Seattle dining establishments is easier north of the Ship Canal than say, Belltown or Capitol Hill, but you might step through any North End door and be surprised. Hence, the 100% Smoke-Free decals and Smoke-Free Sunday.
Smoke Free Sunday is sponsored by the Washington State Department of Health Tobacco Prevention and Control Program.
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