Smoking is one of the most harmful habits when it comes to heart health. It doesn’t just affect the lungs—it can also cause serious problems for the heart and blood vessels, leading to conditions like heart attacks, strokes, heart failure, and even death. Research has shown that the longer and more someone smokes, the more damage is done.
When you smoke, the chemicals in tobacco cause inflammation, harm your blood vessels, and increase the chance of fatty deposits building up in your arteries. Over time, this damage leads to a higher risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD), which is one of the world’s biggest causes of illness and death.
Why Stopping Smoking Matters
The good news is that quitting smoking can make a huge difference. This study found that people who quit smoking, especially if they hadn’t smoked for many years or too heavily, can reduce their risk of heart problems. For those who smoked less in their lifetime—less than 8 “pack-years” (for example, one pack a day for 8 years or half a pack a day for 16 years)—quitting actually brought their heart health back to the same level as someone who never smoked.
For those who smoked more heavily, quitting still has benefits—it reduces the risk of further damage and gives your heart a chance to recover. However, the damage from heavy smoking doesn’t go away overnight. For some, it can take decades—25 years or more—for their heart disease risk to return to the level of a non-smoker. But stopping smoking, even if you’ve smoked a lot, is always better than continuing.
What Happens If You Keep Smoking?
Continuing to smoke causes more harm over time. Heavy lifetime smoking leads to lasting problems for your heart and blood vessels, even if you quit later in life. This is why it’s so important to act early. Every cigarette adds to the damage and increases your chances of health problems.
The study showed that heavy smokers, even after quitting, may face higher CVD risks for many years compared to people who never smoked. For example, someone who smoked heavily for decades might greatly reduce their heart attack risk within a few years after quitting, but their risk will still be higher than a non-smoker’s for a long time.
The Importance of Early Quitting (or Not Starting)
If you’re thinking about quitting smoking, the sooner, the better. The study found that people who quit when they were still “light smokers” saw fast improvements in their heart health. Their risk of heart problems dropped quickly, and in just a few years, they were as healthy as someone who had never smoked.
This highlights the importance of never starting smoking to begin with. For individuals who haven’t smoked, avoiding it entirely means steering clear of these long-term risks. If you’re already smoking, catching it early before it becomes a long-term issue is absolutely key.
Lessons for Everyone
This study sends a clear message that smoking is a preventable cause of heart disease and death. The more you smoke, the greater the harm; but quitting can always help, no matter how much you’ve smoked.
For public health, this means encouraging people to avoid smoking altogether or supporting them to quit as soon as possible. Young people, in particular, must understand the risks so they don’t pick up the habit in the first place.
For individuals, it’s not about waiting until you see the effects of smoking—take it seriously now. Quitting smoking gives your heart and body the chance to recover and avoid further damage. The earlier you stop, the better the outcome for your long-term health.
A Path Towards Better Heart Health
To build a future where heart health is a priority, we need to emphasise prevention. Avoiding smoking or quitting early protects not just your own health but also reduces the burden on healthcare systems and families who deal with smoking-related illness.
This study reminds us that while quitting smoking may seem like a daunting step, it’s one of the best things you can do for your heart. The risks of heavy and long-term smoking highlight how important it is for society to work towards reducing smoking rates entirely. With education, awareness, and support, we can move towards healthier lives for everyone.
Source: Jama Network
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