Research

Arteries age twice as fast in smokers
A new Japanese study suggests that smokers’ arteries harden with age at about double the rate of non-smokers’ arteries. Researchers took measurements in 2,054 adults at baseline and after five or six years to compare the amount of time it takes for blood to travel from the heart to the main blood vessels of the upper arm versus the ankle. The difference between the velocity measurements is an indicator of artery stiffness, as blood moves more slowly through stiff arteries than flexible ones. The results show that smokers’ small and medium sized arteries hardened at twice the rate of nonsmokers’. Greater smoke exposure was associated with more severe arterial stiffening. Click here to read more, or read the study’s abstract, published in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology.

Obesity, smoking may raise blood clot risk
A new study published in the journal Circulation indicates that obesity and smoking are both risk factors for venous thromboembolism (VTE), which are blood clots in the veins. Researchers analyzed data from the Copenhagen City Heart Study, a prospective cohort study that followed 18,954 participants for an average of twenty years, looking for risk factors for VTE. They found that compared to non-smokers, smokers were at 52% greater risk of developing VTE. Compared to the thinnest participants, obese adults were at a 65% increased risk. Other cardiovascular risk factors, such as cholesterol levels, triglyceride levels, and diabetes status were not found to be associated with VTE. Click here to read more, or read the study abstract.

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