ABOUT THE LEARNING SESSION

Join Professor Georg Matt of San Diego State University in learning more about research on thirdhand smoke and policy considerations related to second and thirdhand smoke. This presentation which delves into the historical origins and latest research on thirdhand smoke, shedding light on its emergence as a significant concern in indoor environments. Defined as the lingering chemical residue from commercial tobacco persisting on surfaces, in dust, and embedded in materials, thirdhand smoke undergoes re-emission and re-suspension, forming novel compounds through interactions with oxidants. Furthermore, the presentation reviews findings from laboratory experiments and real-world field studies about the prevalence, persistence, and health risks of thirdhand smoke. Lastly, the presentation examines the differences between secondhand and thirdhand smoke from a policy perspective, emphasizing the necessity of expanding and updating existing policies to effectively address the challenges posed by thirdhand smoke.

Learning Objectives:

• Define what thirdhand smoke is.
• Describe some of the research demonstrating the toxicity, persistence, and prevalence of thirdhand smoke.
• Name policy-relevant differences between secondhand and thirdhand smoke.
• Describe how existing policies need to be updated to protect against exposure to thirdhand smoke

About the Presenter: Dr. Georg E. Matt is a Professor of Psychology in the College of Sciences at San Diego State University (SDSU), a faculty member at the Moores Comprehensive Cancer Center at the University of California, San Diego (UCSD), and Director of the Policy Research Center for Tobacco and the Environment at SDSU. Dr. Matt’s research examines human exposure to tobacco smoke toxicants in real-world field settings and strategies to protect nonsmokers from exposure to toxicants in secondhand and thirdhand smoke. Dr. Matt is a member of the California Thirdhand Smoke Research Consortium, where he directs the Thirdhand Smoke Dissemination, Outreach, and Resource Center (thirdhandsmoke.org). Funded by the California Tobacco-Related Disease Research Program (TRDRP), the Consortium is a multi-institutional and interdisciplinary effort involving research groups from the University of California San Francisco, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, the University of California Riverside, and San Diego State University

About the webinar: This webinar is planned and hosted by the New England Prevention Technology Transfer Center, a program funded through cooperative agreement from SAMHSA. This webinar has been pre-approved by the Maine Prevention Certification Board, an IC&RC member board, for 1 contact hour. Participants who complete this webinar will receive a certificate of completion for 1 contact hour. For questions about this webinar, please contact Kristen Erickson, [email protected].