The study found that smoking tobacco harms the immune system, making people more susceptible to diseases and infections even after they quit. Despite decreasing smoking rates since the 1960s, it remains the top preventable cause of death in the US, causing over 480,000 deaths yearly. Health providers have long warned about smoking-related risks like lung cancer, heart attack, and stroke, but this study adds another compelling reason to quit.
The study found that smoking weakens the body’s ability to fight infections and increases the risk of chronic inflammatory diseases like arthritis. Dr. Violaine Saint-André warns that quitting smoking is crucial, especially for young people, to protect long-term immunity. The research, conducted on 1,000 healthy individuals aged 20 to 69, examined various factors affecting immune response. Smoking, body mass index, and a herpes infection had significant impacts. Quitting smoking improved immune response, but full recovery took years, according to Dr. Darragh Duffy. He emphasizes that it’s never too late to quit smoking.
The study revealed that smoking alters the body’s immune response, with heavier smokers experiencing more significant changes. Dr. Duffy emphasized that reducing smoking, even by a small amount, can still benefit health. Smoking has long-lasting effects on both the innate and adaptive immune responses. While the innate response recovers quickly after quitting, the adaptive response remains affected. The innate response acts quickly but is less precise, while the adaptive response involves antibodies and lymphocytes that can remember and target specific threats.
The study’s key finding is that smoking affects both short-term and long-term adaptive immunity, involving B cells, regulatory T cells, and epigenetic changes. However, the research was conducted on blood samples in a lab, which may not fully reflect real-life immune responses. Dr. Yasmin Thanavala, whose work was referenced, conducted research on mice exposed to smoke, finding that their immune response was less efficient. She notes that changes in the lungs persist over time. One limitation of the study is the homogeneity of participants, all French and mostly with normal body weights.
“We know that numerous things besides smoking impacts our immune response. Our genetic background impacts our immune response. There’s also increasing evidence that our body weight, obesity, impacts immune response,” Thanavala said.
Source: CNN, Author: Jen Christensen
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