‘Tremendous’ Impact Of Smoking On Mortality And Cardiovascular Disease: 30-year Follow-Up Study

Non-smokers live longer and have less cardiovascular disease than those who smoke, according to a 30-year follow-up study of 54,000 men and women in Norway. Smoking, say the investigators, is “strongly” related to cardiovascular morbidity and mortality from various causes.

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Strong Link Between Smoking and Brain Haemorrhage

There is a strong link linking smoking and brain haemorrhage, which is demonstrated in a new Danish study just published in Stroke, an American health check journal.

Smokers run a substantial risk of incurring a brain haemorrhage, the most serious form of stroke, everywhere every fourth die in three months after being hit by a haemorrhage.

That is the message from a large Danish study, which has just been published in the American health check journal Stroke. The study demonstrated a strong correlation linking smoking and stroke, which according to the authors should lead to increased efforts to warn against this particular disease, for instance on cigarette packages. Around 1,000 Danes are hit every year with a stroke.

“We have been well aware that smoking increases the risk of a blood clot in the brain. But it appears now that there is an even stronger link linking smoking and a brain haemorrhage, which is a much more serious disorder. Thus it appears that smoking also weakens blood vessel walls in the brain, which increases to risk of puncturing, “says older consultant at Hvidovre Sickbay Tom Olsen, who is behind the study, together with statistics officer Klaus K. Andersen from Denmark’s Technical University.

Researchers examined the relationship linking smoking and the risk of either getting stroke or blood clot in the brain in nearly 40,000 Danes with strokes that are a catch-all term for the two diseases. It appeared that smokers are 30 per cent more likely to be hit by the much more serious brain haemorrhage than the blood clot in the brain.

Food for thought

Scientists believe that the study should give food for thought among smokers, and also to a greater extent focus on the risk of stroke in the campaigns against smoking.

“I do not reckon that there are currently many public that are aware that smoking can be an entry ticket to a brain haemorrhage. Stroke is one of the major diseases that we can all be hit by. But if you smoke the risk increases considerably to incur the most serious form of stroke, the brain haemorrhage, which often mean lifelong disability – if you  are so lucky to survive, ” says Tom Olsen.

Yet another reason to consider quit smoking pills, quit smoking hypnosis or any other quit smoking method.

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Smoking Death Statistics in the US

Deaths directly from Smoking: More than 440,000 deaths each year are directly smoking-associated (CDC)

Average life years lost from Smoking: 12 years (NIA)

Death rate extrapolations for the US for Smoking: 440,000 per year, 36,666 per month, 8,461 per week, 1,205 per day, 50 per hour, 0 per minute, 0 per second.

Deaths information for Smoking: An estimated 400,000 deaths each year are caused directly by cigarette smoking. (Source: excerpt from Smoking and Your Digestive System: NIDDK)

Life years lost from Smoking: Smoking doesn’t just cut a few months off the end of your life. It reduces the life of the average smoker by 12 years. (Source: excerpt from Smoking It’s Never Too Late to Stop – Age Page – Health Information: NIA)

Death statistics for Smoking: The following are statistics from various sources about deaths and Smoking:

• Death rate is 2-3 times higher than non-smokers
• Estimated to cause 10 million deaths per year worldwide by 2020 (WHO Web Site)
• 1.2 million deaths in Europe (The European Heart Network)
• 45,000 African American deaths each year in America (CBCF Health Organisation, 2004)
• 1.2 million deaths from smoking in Europe (The European Heart Network, 2000)
• 400,000 deaths annually in the US (Mayo Clinic)

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