Paris, Tenn.—The Henry County Health Department has been awarded a grant from Truth
Initiative® to raise awareness about the importance of clean indoor air laws by collaborating
with local businesses and community leaders to voluntarily adopt comprehensive smoke-free
policies, and reduce secondhand smoke exposure throughout Paris and Henry County.
Any local business which is interested in working with local youth on this project can contact Public Health Educator Rachel Matlock at the Health Department on Joy Street in Paris at 731 642 4025, extension 108.
The Henry County Clean Air Project will engage youth advocates in grades 9-12 attending Henry
County schools, with support from the project lead and sponsors. These young advocates are
seeking to help at least one business in Paris or Henry County adopt a voluntary smoke-free
policy for their workplace. To do this, the activists will be speaking with organizations and
employees during public meetings, such as the Henry County Health Council, about the benefits
of smoke-free environments. They will also work to educate citizens in Henry and surrounding
counties about the dangers of secondhand smoke and the importance of clean indoor air laws
through the use of social media and radio.
Tennessee is one of the nearly two dozen U.S. states and territories not protected by
comprehensive smoke-free laws, which means more than 42 percent of the total population is
unprotected. There is no risk-free level of secondhand smoke, with 41,000 non-smoking adults
dying from its effects every year. According to the Centers for Disease Control, 20.7 percent of
Tennessee adults smoked in 2018, compared to the national average of 16.1 percent.
Tennessee’s high rate of tobacco usage not only endangers users, but it also threatens those
around them.
Clean indoor air laws reduce exposure to secondhand smoke, which contains chemical
compounds known to be carcinogenic. In addition to protection from secondhand smoke
exposure, studies indicate that smoke-free homes and workplaces encourage smokers to quit
and reduce the number of cigarettes they consume per day.