If you are concerned about
the risk of cataracts, and if you are a smoker, there is good news in that by
stopping smoking you should be able to decrease your cataract risk.
Research on Smoking & Cataract Risk
According to research on
smoking and cataract risk reported in JAMA Ophthalmology,
stopping smoking decreases the
risk of cataracts over time. The study 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.
Findings on Cataract Risk in Smokers
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.
This
is supportive of the results of a previous study which 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.
If you or someone you know has questions about
cataract risk and smoking or needs to schedule an appointment, please feel free to call us at 508-730-2020, visit Center for Sight, Google+ or www.facebook.com/centerforsightfallriver
to schedule an appointment.
Center for Sight is conveniently
located at 1565 North Main Street, Suite 406, Fall River, Massachusetts
02720 for patients
from Massachusetts or Rhode Island.
