PSAs Tackle Secondhand Smoke

The American Legacy Foundation and the Ad Council have launched a tongue-in-cheek ad campaign warning parents against secondhand smoke.

The "Don't Pass Gas" campaign centers on TV and radio PSAs that show family members holding their noses and shooing away gas—later revealed to viewers to be secondhand smoke.

Print ads, outdoor boards and a dedicated Web site, Dontpassgas.org, support. The Ad Council distributes the PSAs 28,000 media outlets this week.

The launch coincides with the release of new research from the Washington, DC-based American Legacy Foundation on secondhand smoke. Secondhand Smoke: Youth Exposure and Adult Attitudes reports that 13.8 million children are exposed to secondhand smoke at home; that includes 13% of U.S. kids ages 12-17. About 7% of kids are exposed to secondhand smoke in the family car.