Smoking Leads to Five-Fold Increase in Heart Disease and Stroke in Under-50s

Credit: www.virginiastrokesystems.org

Preventing smoking among teens and young adults could help lower health complications associated with smoking.

Smokers who are under 50 years of age have a fivefold increased risk of having a heart disease or stroke. The risk of these chronic condition doubles for smokers who are over 60 years of age, says the European Society of Cardiology.

Stopping young people taking up smoking is a key goal of the ESC joint guidelines on prevention of cardiovascular disease. Other recommendations are to avoid smoking and exposure to passive smoking, and that all smokers should be given advice and help to quit.

Passive smoking at home or in the work place increases the risk of CVD by 30%. However, smoking bans lead to rapid and sizeable reductions in hospitalizations for acute myocardial infarction. People who stop smoking also rapidly reduce their risk of CVD.

Professor Tell said: "Passive smoking is much more dangerous than many people think. Increasing exposure to cigarette smoke, either active or passive, is significantly associated with atherosclerosis.''

She concluded: "Prevention of smoking is the most cost-effective way to treat and prevent cardiovascular disease. This is particularly important for children and adolescents who are susceptible to tobacco promotion and find it more difficult to quit smoking."

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The above story is based on the May 31, 2013 news release by European Society of Cardiology (ESC).