Research

New research discovers link between smoking and brain damage
Researchers have found that a compound in tobacco provokes white blood cells in the central nervous system to attack healthy cells, leading to severe neurological damage. The compound, known as NNK, is a substance commonly found in tobacco that is known to become carcinogenic when it is metabolized in the body. Researchers suggest that NNK does not directly harm brain cells, but believe it may cause neuroinflammation which can lead to certain brain disorders. The research is published in the Journal of Neurochemistry. Click here for the abstract. Read more here.

Smoking more than five cigarettes a day may provoke migraine attacks
Despite previous research that indicates smoking could improve migraines, new research suggests that tobacco is a precipitating factor for migraines and that smoking more than five cigarettes a day triggers headaches, dosage being an important factor for a greater risk of having a migraine. The study showed that migraine frequency was higher in migraine sufferers who smoked compared to non-smoking migraine sufferers. The study appears in the Journal of Headache and Pain. Click here to read more.

Roll-your-own cigarettes dangerous money-savers
New research has shown that roll-your-own cigarettes, which smokers often turn to as a cheaper option when cigarette taxes rise, may be more harmful than factory-made cigarettes because people suck them harder and more efficiently. Researchers found that roll-your-own smokers inhaled 28% more smoke per filtered cigarette, even though the roll-your-own cigarettes contained less tobacco compared to factory made cigarettes. Read more here, or click here to download a PDF of the study, which was published in BMC Public Health.

Smoking speeds MS progression
A recent study suggests that people with multiple sclerosis (MS) who smoke are more likely to experience a shift from the relapsing-remitting form to steadily progressive disease more quickly compared to patients who do not smoke. The risk of advancing to secondary progressive MS was about 2.5 times greater among smokers relative to non-smoking patients over a 3.3-year follow-up. The study also found that smokers were significantly more likely to have primary progressive MS and worse disease compared to nonsmokers. Although causality has yet to be proved, researchers suggest MS patients who smoke could delay disease progression by quitting smoking. Click here for more details. Click here to access the abstract of the research in the Archives of Neurology.

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