Smoking is well known to be
a major risk factor for high blood pressure, cardiovascular disease, stroke and
eye diseases and problems including macular degeneration and glaucoma.
Smoking & Cataract Risk
Researchers studying the risk of cataracts
among smokers reported in JAMA Ophthalmology that stopping smoking decreases the risk of cataracts over time. The
researchers followed a total of 44,371 men, 45 to 79 years old over a 10 year
period and the participants filled out questionnaires on their smoking habits
and lifestyles and were then matched with the Swedish National Day-Surgery
Register and local records of cataract extraction.
The
researchers found that smokers of more than 15 cigarettes a day had a 42%
increased risk of cataract surgery compared with men who had never smoked. It
also found that men who smoked an average of more than 15 cigarettes a day but
had stopped smoking more than 20 years earlier had a 21% increased risk. Thus, they found a positive association
between cigarette smoking and cataract surgery in men, with a significant
increase of cataracts among smokers compared to those who never smoked. Also, stopping smoking was associated with
a statistically significant decrease in risk with increasing time from stopping
smoking. Even heavy smokers had some benefit from quitting smoking.
Further, a previous study detailed the relationship between smoking cessation
and cataract risk in women. In this study, they found that after cessation of
smoking, cataract risk in women decreased with time. Women who smoked 6 to 10
cigarettes a day but had ceased smoking 10 years earlier, and women who smoked
more than 10 cigarettes a day but had ceased smoking 20 years earlier were
found to have a relative risk of cataracts not significantly different from
women who had never smoked.
Smoking cessation seems to decrease the risk of cataract development and the need for
cataract surgery with time, although the risk persists for decades. The higher
the intensity of smoking, the longer it takes for the increased risk to
decline. These findings emphasize the importance of early smoking cessation
and, preferably, the avoidance of smoking altogether. The best way to
avoid cataracts is not to smoke.
If
you or someone you know is a smoker and is concerned about cataract risk, they
are encouraged to schedule an eye examination at D’Ambrosio Eye Care by calling
us at 800-325-3937, visiting D’Ambrosio
Eye Care, Google+
or facebook.com/dambrosioeyecare so that we can help.
D'Ambrosio Eye Care provides eye care for patients
throughout greater Boston, central and western Massachusetts with office
locations at 479 Old Union Turnpike, Lancaster, Massachusetts 01523, 100 Powder
Mill Road, Acton, Massachusetts 01720, 413 Main Street, Athol, Massachusetts
01331 and 74 Main Street, Gardner, Massachusetts 01440.
