How Smoking Affects The Brain

How Smoking Affects The Brain
How Smoking Affects The Brain
Anonim

Lung cancer, cardiovascular disease, pulmonary emphysema and tragically high mortality rates all result from this - almost no literate person is unaware of the damage that smoking applied to the respiratory and cardiovascular systems. It is no secret that cancer of the throat and oral cavity, damage to the gums and teeth, poor skin condition as a result of tobacco smoke.

However, it seems that we rarely think about how smoking works on another major organ - the brain.

It is not difficult to assume that there tobacco smoke is harmful. Smoking constricts blood vessels, which reduces the irrigation of the brain. Adding to this the deteriorating condition of the lungs, the supply of oxygen to the brain is hampered for a long time - which leads to a general reduced performance to the eventual cessation of smoking. However, it turns out that things are even worse:

Smoking causes permanent changes in the cerebral cortex.

That's according to research conducted by teams of scientists in Edinburgh and Montreal. The cortex is called the outer layer of the brain. It carries out functions defining the intellect, such as memory, linguistic skills and perception.

Harm from cigarettes
Harm from cigarettes

The study was based on 224 men and 260 women aged about 73 years. They were divided into three groups - active smokers, ex-smokers and those who had never smoked. The results are clear - even in ex-smokers the cortex is thinner than in people who have never smoked.

The decrease in the density and thickness of the cortex is naturally associated with problems with memory and the ability to process information. Permanent problems - recovery of the cortex is unlikely even if you give up the bad habit. Although some people experience a partial recovery in cortex thickness, the changes are generally permanent - the thickness is reduced even in people who quit smoking 25 years or more ago.

After all - a ray of hope!

Stop smoking
Stop smoking

Although they are adamant about the relationship between smoking and the thinning of the cortex, scientists admit that it generally thins with age, even without a single cigarette smoked. That is, in younger smokers the changes are not so significant, and there is a dependence on the amount of cigarettes smoked per day. However, in the long run, tobacco smoke can lead to cognitive degradation!

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