Cigarettes Are Not Only Bad for the Lungs... "They Also Reduce Brain Volume"

Foreign Media Reports Raise Concerns Over Alzheimer's Disease Risk

A study has found that smoking also affects brain health. Long-term smoking can cause brain shrinkage.

On the 13th (local time), according to foreign media including UPI, researchers from the University of Washington School of Medicine analyzed data from the UK Biobank, which contains genetic and health information of 500,000 adults, and announced these research results.

According to the research team, the greater the daily amount of smoking, the smaller the brain volume appeared to be.

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Laura J. Bierut, the lead professor of the study, explained, "Scientists have overlooked the effects of smoking on the brain until recently, partly because they focused on the terrible impacts smoking has on the lungs and heart. However, as we began to examine our brains more closely, it became clear that smoking is also very harmful to the brain."

Professor Bierut emphasized, "The reduction in brain volume is equivalent to aging," adding, "Both aging and smoking are risk factors for dementia, and in an aging population, this finding that smoking affects the brain is important."

The research team stated that quitting smoking cannot repair brain damage that has already occurred. In fact, by comparing the brains of people who quit smoking years ago with those who never smoked, they confirmed that the brains of former smokers were already permanently smaller than those who never smoked.

However, the research team noted that quitting smoking can prevent further brain shrinkage. In other words, quitting smoking is essential for preventing Alzheimer's disease.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.