Light Smokers Still Face Health Risks
Cutting Back Isn't Enough
Aug. 16, 2002 -- Cutting back on cigarettes may not be enough to save your life. New research shows that even light smokers have a significantly higher risk of heart attack and death than non-smokers. And women are especially vulnerable, even if they don't inhale.
Researchers say many people wrongly assume that smoking only a few cigarettes or smoking without inhaling is not dangerous. In fact, most studies on the health risks associated with tobacco use have focused on people who smoke more than 10 cigarettes a day.
But in the current study, researchers found that smoking as few as three cigarettes per day doubled a woman's risk of heart attack or death. Among men, smoking as few as six cigarettes or slightly more than one cigar a day was enough to double their risk of heart attack and death from any cause.
Even after adjusting for known heart-disease risk factors such as total cholesterol, family history, lifestyle, weight, and diabetes, researchers found the risk of heart attack and death increased with the amount that men and women smoked.
Women who smoked also had a significantly higher risk of heart attack and death from all causes than did male smokers. The health risks associated with smoking were about 50% higher among women than men.
Researchers say women may be more susceptible to the hazardous effects of smoking because smoking affects estrogen balance, which is thought to protect against heart disease in women. In addition, women are more prone to respiratory diseases, such as lung cancer, than are men.
The study also showed that smokers who don't inhale also face greater health risks than nonsmokers. Non-inhaling women who smoked 10 or more cigarettes a day had twice the risk of heart attack and a 60% higher risk of death compared with nonsmokers. Men who didn't inhale also had a greater risk of heart attack.
Danish researchers based their study on information provided by more than 12,000 men and women who participated in the Copenhagen City Heart Study from 1976 until 1998. Their findings appear in the August issue of the Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health.
Light Smokers Still Face Health Risks
Cutting Back Isn't Enough
Aug. 16, 2002 -- Cutting back on cigarettes may not be enough to save your life. New research shows that even light smokers have a significantly higher risk of heart attack and death than non-smokers. And women are especially vulnerable, even if they don't inhale.
Researchers say many people wrongly assume that smoking only a few cigarettes or smoking without inhaling is not dangerous. In fact, most studies on the health risks associated with tobacco use have focused on people who smoke more than 10 cigarettes a day.
But in the current study, researchers found that smoking as few as three cigarettes per day doubled a woman's risk of heart attack or death. Among men, smoking as few as six cigarettes or slightly more than one cigar a day was enough to double their risk of heart attack and death from any cause.
Even after adjusting for known heart-disease risk factors such as total cholesterol, family history, lifestyle, weight, and diabetes, researchers found the risk of heart attack and death increased with the amount that men and women smoked.
Women who smoked also had a significantly higher risk of heart attack and death from all causes than did male smokers. The health risks associated with smoking were about 50% higher among women than men.
Researchers say women may be more susceptible to the hazardous effects of smoking because smoking affects estrogen balance, which is thought to protect against heart disease in women. In addition, women are more prone to respiratory diseases, such as lung cancer, than are men.
The study also showed that smokers who don't inhale also face greater health risks than nonsmokers. Non-inhaling women who smoked 10 or more cigarettes a day had twice the risk of heart attack and a 60% higher risk of death compared with nonsmokers. Men who didn't inhale also had a greater risk of heart attack.
Danish researchers based their study on information provided by more than 12,000 men and women who participated in the Copenhagen City Heart Study from 1976 until 1998. Their findings appear in the August issue of the Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health.