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Originally Posted by cardboard adolescent
But I still demand conclusive evidence that being exposed to the smoke levels in a restaurant two or three times a month would have any sort of noticeable effect. As for bars, I say you accept whatever risk second hand smoke may pose when you go in there.
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Who do you want to accumulate this evidence and who exactly would pay them to gather it? As far as I know there have been a number of studies which have shown a decent correlation between smoke inhalation and cancer, early death and all that. These always get pushed aside by tobacco-industry funded research which shows there to be no correlation. I think there'll be a lot less research done into the effects of first and second hand smoke in the future because it's hardly a lucrative business for the unbiased researcher... plus they know their work is going to be swept under the carpet.
Being exposed to any fumes that are toxic and contain carconegic and ionising components is going to have some kind of effect. You're right in the use of the word 'noticeable', because I think it's true that the majority of non-smokers who die of smoke-enhanced diseases probably don't die purely as a result of passive smoke inhilation.
In most cases it's a cumulative effect, carcinogens in car fumes and fried food doing giving similar free-radical ageing effects and other lifestyle choices all working for or against the health of the person.
At the same time, although typically there would have to be several mutations in the proto-oncogenes or tumor-suppressor genes for carcigonesis* to get started, in theory just one mutation, cause by just one brief contact with a carcinogen could be enough to set off cancer. Potentially, the next time you breathe in smoke that very breath could be the one which gives you a cancer.
The truth is probably somewhere between the standard smoker's denial and the standard non-smoker-health-freak's paranoia... i.e. second-hand smoke can lead to your death but its rare esp. compared to the number of people exposed. I personally think that although first-hand smoke is a big killer (and ager), second-hand smoke is still a health and aesthetic threat but it ranks pretty low on my list of things to avoid.
*Cancer-cell generation.
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Chances are you're lowering your life expectancy much more by drinking and driving home
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You're also massively increasing your chances of being arrested for drunk-driving!