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Even a
small amount of exposure to cigarette smoke can set in motion
the biological processes that lead to heart disease, according
to a study reported in the June 5 issue of the Journal of
the American College of Cardiology.
"People
generally think that if you only smoke a little bit, it's
OK," said study co-author Dr. John A. Ambrose, of Saint
Vincent Catholic Medical Centers in New York City. "That's
foolish. Our results show that even people who only smoke
a little are doing damage to their vascular system."
Past studies
have suggested that smoking reduces the ability of the endothelium
-- the thin layer of cells lining blood vessels -- to dilate.
In this study, Ambrose and his colleagues wanted to see if
that kind of damage, which is a first step toward the dangerous
plaque build-up known as atherosclerosis, increased along
with the number of cigarettes smoked.
To find
out, the researchers assessed endothelial dysfunction in eight
nonsmokers, seven smokers who smoked a pack a week or less,
and seven smokers who smoked a pack a day or more. None of
them had any other risk factors for atherosclerosis.
To the
researchers' surprise, they discovered that it did not seem
to matter how many cigarettes smokers smoked. There were no
significant differences between the heavy and light smokers,
and they were all significantly worse off than the nonsmokers.
According
to the authors, the results suggest "even a small amount
of active smoke exposure appears to have a significant effect
on one of the early pathophysiologic indicators for atherosclerosis...."
Dr. Stan
Glantz, a medical professor at the University of California
in San Francisco, told Medical Week that what's important
about this study is that "it substantially adds to the
case that it doesn't take much smoke to do damage to the coronary
system."
Noting
that even second-hand smoke "clobbers the functioning
of the lining of the arteries as much as being a heavy smoker,"
Glantz said public officials should make sure that all workplaces
and public places such as restaurants and bars, are smoke-free.
Source:
Heart
Disease Week of June 16, 2002
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