MASON CITY, IA - Lorna Acker knows it’s tough to get the smell of smoke out of a room.
"We’ve taken the bed out shampoo the carpet and it's still in there."
She says many hotels and motels designate around 20% of their rooms as smoking rooms. Americas Best Value Inn in mason city has seven, but people still break the rules and experts say sneaking a smoke can be a hazard to others.
Tammy Bryant with the Cerro Gordo County Department of Public Health says third hand smoking is becoming a more recognized danger.
"It sticks to your couch it sticks to you and as kids crawl through that on the floor their absorbing that third hand smoke into their system as well."
Bryant says it can be potentially cancer causing because the tobacco and nicotine mix with air pollutants to form what's called TSNA, or Tobacco Specific Nitrosamines. She says the carcinogens can stick around for a long time.
Acker says she has concerns about third hand smoke.
"You could have someone smoking in one room and a mother and her baby are in the next room and smelling that smoke."
