It is estimated by the Centers for Disease Control
that more than 42 million people in the United States are smokers. Cataracts are a major cause of vision loss in seniors and affect more
than 24 million Americans over the age of 40. Now we know that there is a
marked association between smoking and cataract development.
Research on Smoking & Cataracts
Researchers studying the
risk of cataracts among smokers reported in JAMA Ophthalmology found that stopping smoking decreases the risk of cataracts over time. The
researchers 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.
The researchers found that 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. Further, a
previous study from 2005 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 is a
smoker and is concerned about cataracts please schedule an eye examination at
Alabama Eye & Cataract Center in Birmingham by calling 205-930-0930,
visiting Alabama Eye & Cataract Center,
Google+ or
www.facebook.com/michelsonlaservision.
Alabama
Eye & Cataract Center in Birmingham is located at UAB-Highlands, 1201 11th
Avenue S, Suite 501, Birmingham, Alabama 35205 and staffed by UAB Medicine
Cataract Surgeons Marc Michelson, M.D. and Tyler Hall, M.D. who perform Laser
Cataract Surgery at UAB Callahan Eye Hospital.
