Research published in *PLOS Medicine* has revealed that smoking even a few cigarettes a day can significantly increase the risk of heart disease and raise the risk of death by 60%. The findings challenge the long-held belief that smoking less means less harm, showing that even low levels of smoking can cause serious cardiovascular damage. Scientists from the American Heart Association’s Tobacco Regulation and Addiction Center analyzed data from 22 long-term health studies involving more than 320,000 adults. The study found that adults who smoked two to five cigarettes a day had double the chance of developing heart disease, with a 60% increase in overall death risk. The researchers emphasized that quitting smoking completely is the only way to reverse these risks, as partial cessation does not provide significant health benefits.
According to the study, which was published in *PLOS Medicine*, current smokers had more than double the risk of dying from any cause compared to never-smokers. The findings show that even low levels of smoking significantly raise the risk of heart disease, stroke, heart failure, and atrial fibrillation. The study also found that health risks decrease immediately after quitting smoking, with major improvements seen within 10 years and a substantial reduction in risks after 20 years. However, the study acknowledges that it may take 30 years or more for former smokers to fully recover from smoking-related health risks. The researchers stressed that the primary public health message for current smokers should be early cessation rather than reducing the amount they smoke.
The study’s authors also noted several limitations, including the fact that smoking habits were self-reported at the start of each study. The researchers warned that the stigma attached to smoking could lead to underreporting, particularly among women, which might affect the accuracy of the data. Additionally, the researchers did not include data on e-cigarettes or other tobacco products, indicating that further research is needed to understand the long-term health effects of these products. Overall, the study underscores the critical importance of quitting smoking entirely, with no safe level of smoking recommended. The findings provide a stark warning about the dangers of even low levels of smoking and reinforce the need for public health campaigns focused on tobacco cessation.