Secondhand Smoke May Cause Dementia

Steve Milloy doesn't like this one (he posted the link with a caustic comment), but it has some basis. There seems to be some link between the brain damage involved in Alzheimer's and Parkinson's diseases, and prolonged exposure to pollutants. Pesticides used to protect tobacco, dioxin released when bleached white cigarette paper burns, and Aspergillus mold spores that are inevitably found in tobacco, all harm our bodies in several ways even when we're not getting the stimulant effect of nicotine. It would be hard enough to find out which specific pollutants are most likely to cause Alzheimer's or Parkinson's Disease if commercial interests weren't fighting to keep scientific attention away from commercial products...but at least we now know for sure that exposure to cigarette smoke won't help anyone who wants to avoid these diseases.

http://www.kcl.ac.uk/newsevents/news/newsrecords/2013/01Jan/Passive-smoking-increases-risk-of-severe-dementia,-according-to-study-in-China.aspx